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adventure #1 glaspie​/​haas

by alex massa plays well with others

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1.
2.
3.
bears' cage 02:05
4.
5.
6.

about

nikki glaspie - drums+cymbals
brian haas - rhodes+moog
alex massa - trumpet+effects

from alex: ‘plays well with others’ came about by accident. after having multiple difficulties when trying to book a trio tour in the spring/summer of 2017, i decided to say fuck it, and utilize my network around the country. some of these people were close friends, but the larger percentage were people that i had met, and at the end of our conversations or time with one another, they said: “if you ever get over to_(city)_, hit me up - i have a gig for you”. so i started hitting everyone up in the route that i wanted. what started as a 10-14 day trio tour ended up becoming a springboard.
starting in july, i ended up booking 20-something dates through 12 cities over 4 weeks, but i was going to be alone, and my tour needed a name. if i was going to be playing with people for the first time, what was the big idea? playing well with others. i hired musicians from each city that i
went to. i slept on floors and couches and in big beds in mansions from patrons of different scenes. food, drink, laughter, and of course music, met me at every doorstep, and i took it all in. my days were filled with music. from sun up to sundown. wherever i was, people wanted to jam. they wanted to write - and record! with no specific agenda other than the act of creation itself. it was a continuation of my life goal of playing with as many souls as i could. a lesson in playing well with others. it turned out to be a hell of a ride full up wonderful and scary happenings and shaped the way i collaborate today.

this adventure is the first in a series that will document this style of play. uncertainty makes many people uncomfortable, and making a record with little to no rehearsal definitely doesn’t secure any certainty. but that is where i believe the best conversations happen. nikki and brian are masters of their craft in their own regard and understand the idea that shit happens, and that conversations can always be made better when we take the judgment out of the moment. i am very proud and honored to debut this adventure with the help of both of them, musically and
personally.

recorded at neutral sound studios in new orleans by aaron boudreaux, and mixed my dan pierson of whiskey point studios in chicago, adventure #1 takes you on a 20-minute journey through compositions by myself, brian, and miles davis.

(1) 'take me to tulsa' is a completely improvised track, and was something that we hated immediately after we recorded it - mostly because it was the first track of the day and we were all hungover. (2) 'dancing with trolls' (massa) is a piece i wrote in iceland, about their superstition of building roads and making sure that they never built a road or bridge over a troll’s house…hence some of the crazy curves around the island. (3) 'bear’s cage' (haas) is a movement from haas’ recent suite about ‘el reno’, the biggest tornado in recorded history. bear’s cage refers to the area under a rotating wall cloud and the blinding precipitation that surrounds a tornado. (4) 'filles de kilimanjaro' is a miles davis composition. i do not know enough about his inspiration for the song to talk on it. but it is very dope and we do our best to pay tribute through it. (5) 'neville longbottom' is a tune that is dedicated to the underdogs and those who are often left by the wayside when they don’t progress in similar manners as their colleagues and fellow workers. these are the individuals who typically save the day, not only in fiction but in everyday life. (6) 'golden fields' outro is another movement from haas’ tornado suite and ends this adventure.

i hope you take these 20 minutes to sit back and smile. close your eyes. you can even laugh - there are some very funny mistakes to accompany many wonderful musical moments. the light in nikki and brian come through. i challenge you to ‘play well with others’ more from now on. you
can try out new ideas, new friends, new careers, new hobbies. just do it with an open mind and a reminder that we are not the same. and that’s what makes us beautiful.

love,
a

credits

released March 27, 2020

recorded by aaron boudreaux at neutral sound studio in new orleans la usa
mixed and mastered dan pierson at whisky point studios in chicago il usa

www.massanotmassa.com

Released on ears&eyes Records: www.earsandeyesrecords.com, earsandeyesrecords.bandcamp.com, twitter.com/earseyesRecords, soundcloud.com/earseyesrecords, facebook.com/earsandeyesrecords, instagram.com/earsandeyesrecords

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Alex Massa Rapid City, South Dakota

Alex Massa is a trumpeter, composer for stage and film, and educator, based in the Black Hills of South Dakota.

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