♫♪  Man Forever - “The Clear Realization”

You know John Colpitts from his eternal drum psych-workouts as a member of Oneida, and as the mastermind behind the evolving percussion-oriented ensemble Man Forever — which has featured the likes of Greg Fox and the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s Brian Chase on previous releases of hypnotic extended technique drum performance (e.g., 2012’s luminous Pansophical Cataract). When he’s not clustered around a single snare drum with a friend or two, rolling those sticks unto infinity with improbable discipline, Colpitts stretches out into full kit performance to pour forth his polyrhythmic mantras as the beating heart of a larger ensemble of percussionists.

The video for “The Clear Realization,” a cut from the just-released Man Forever collaborative LP called Ryonen with New England ensemble So Percussion, illustrates the membrane-pounding reality of the conjoined group’s live rhythmic odysseys — complete with gang vocalizations cut loose from the posse. By the end of the clip, you should clearly realize that Colpitts and his collaborators (in this case, the percussion ensemble Tigue) have mastered their instruments, and can toy with intricate rhythms and meters at their own discretion like so much wood putty in so many calloused hands. Directed by Gabe DeLoach, the clip’s concurrent visual distortion jolts the already head-bobbing performance into an even deeper jitter zone. Bob along, and buy Ryonen from Thrill Jockey.

• Man Forever: http://johncolpitts.bandcamp.com
• Thrill Jockey: http://www.thrilljockey.com

Chocolate Grinder

CHOCOLATE GRINDER is our audio/visual section, with an emphasis on the lesser heard and lesser known. We aim to dig deep, but we’ll post any song or video we find interesting, big or small.

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