Bagpipes?
Not known for their prominence in modern music, some may see Wax and Wane by David Watson's The Wax as an attempt to place bagpipes back into a context where they are entirely unwelcome.
The CD could be seen as the imposition of an artefact of imperial Britain onto a worldly improvised scene where its symbolism could clash with the listener's preconceptions of the preoccupations of the other instrument players.
On the other hand a lover of bagpipes may see this CD as mockery.
The use of bagpipes in this context has nothing to do with symbols. David Watson may be trying to chart some weird progression from the highlands (via AC/DC?) but his primary concern is sound.
Bagpipes make a lovely sound. The way we listen to them needs freshening up. The essence of their beauty still lies with the drones. Droning's modern tradition began with La Monte Young and has extended through to Sonic Boom and beyond to the point where drone aficianados, exhausted, have now looked back to the ancient world's sources of the original drones: bagpipes, Tuvan throat singing, etc.
The other players on this recording contribute beats, bass and noises. Otomo Yoshihide and Kato Hideki are known to Australians through their recording and tours in Peril (with Tony Buck). Ikue Mori, Andrea Parkins and Evan Gallagher are familiar faces in every downtown venue in New York.
David Watson is from New Zealand in 1960 but has been living in New York for more than fifteen years.
1981-86 Active in N.Z. music and art scene. This included appearance in first N.Z. International Arts Fest, co-founding Braille Records to record the local improv music scene (which released 12 LPs in the eighties, soon[?] to be re-releasedas a box set retrospective by the "Now Sound"), toured extensively, recorded, released three LPs on Braille, and did much to create an improv/noise-music scene where previously there was none. This included organising two national festival weeks for improvised music, involving 60 and 90 musicians respectively, and an Asian-Pacific Performance festival. Selected to participate in Australia-N.Z. Art Exchange in 1983 and 1985.
1987 Moved to New York. Performed in clubs, new music and concert venues throughout New York, Europe, Australia, N.Z. and Japan since then.
1988-95 Primarily guitar performances in New York with Ushio Torikai, Ikue Mori, Mark Ribot, Zeena Parkins, Kato Hideki, Cecil Taylor, William Hooker, Shelley Hirsch, Andrea Parkins plus many others at venues like CBGB's, Knitting Factory, the Cooler, as well as curating music series like Roulette, Experimental Intermedia, St. Marks Church, Greenwhich House, Bang-on-a-Can, PS 1, PS 122.
Japan tour with John Zorn, and members of the Boredoms, Merzbow, Ground Zero, Makigami Koichi, etc., first performances of Zorn's "COBRA" in Japan.
Solo tour across Europe (guitar and media) to Prague, Ghent, Apollohuis (Holland), Cave 12 (Geneva), LMC Festival (London), etc., including performances with Tim Hodgkinson, Tenko, Ikue Mori...
1996 Commission for a new tape composition at PS 1 Art Museum exhibition, "Tinseltown", What Is Music? festival (Sydney), Hobart New Music Festival, Dunedin Public Art Gallery commission for piece for three Highland Pipe & Drum bands to open new gallery.
1997 Bang-on-a-Can festival at Lincoln Center (composition for bagpipe quartet and amplified percussion), World Orchestra Day at The World Financial Center, NY (composition for Higland Pipe Band), soundtrack for Abigail Child movie "B Side" in Whitney Biennale.
Also recording with Tony Buck, Kato Hideki and Chris Mann. Commissioned disc for wwwthing.net/thing radio. Collaboration with artist Mike Ashkin for Walker Center, Minneapolis. Collaboration with artists Komar & Melamid on "Lenin" opera for "The Kitchen" NY. Soundtrack for Laura Parnes feature, "NO is YES".
DISCOGRAPHY
The Primitive Art Group "Five Tread", "Future Jaw"
David Watson "Reference"
Exquisite Corpses "Bnkr", "from PS 122"
Ikue Mori "Hex Kitchen", "Soundtracks"
David Watson "Knitting Factory Bagpipe Fest", "Bit Part Actor", "Midwest", "Wax and Wane"
Komar/Melamid "The Most Un/Wanted Music"
