Muslimgauze

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Muslimgauze

Background information
Birth name Bryn Jones
Also known as E.g Oblique Graph
Born June 17, 1961
Origin United Kingdom
Died January 14, 1999
Genre(s) Experimental, Ethnic Electronica, Ambient, Industrial
Years active 1982 – 1999
Label(s) Staalplaat, Soleilmoon

Muslimgauze was the one-man musical project of Bryn Jones (June 17, 1961 - January 14, 1999), a prolific British electronic music artist, strongly influenced by everything to do with the Middle East.

Contents

[edit] Political beliefs

The name Muslimgauze was derived from the word "muslin," which is a type of gauze, and changed into an adjective describing the area in which he was interested. He was a staunch supporter of Hamas and the PLO[citation needed], and he believed Palestine should be "freed from the Zionists." Born in Manchester, England, United Kingdom, he never visited the Middle East, explaining, "I don't think you can visit an occupied land. It's the principle. Not until it's free again."[1]

[edit] Musical career

He first began making music in 1982, under the alias of E.g Oblique Graph, to protest the Israeli invasion of Lebanon. He released three cassettes and a 7" EP as E.g Oblique Graph: Extended Play (1982), Piano Room (1982), the 7" Triptych (1982), and Inhalt (1983). After he changed his name to Muslimgauze, he released a 7" EP (Hammer & Sickle), his first full-length LP (Kabul), and another cassette (Opaques) in 1983. In 1990, the Australian record label Extreme signed him, but he left in 1994 for Dutch label Staalplaat and its sister American label Soleilmoon because his albums were not being released as promptly as he had wanted, and he was also not receiving payment. Since he had put out seven releases since he signed, money was becoming a problem. His output was always very high. In 1995, he had six releases; in 1996, fifteen; in 1997, nine; in 1998, sixteen. After his death, the many record companies he had associated with released unreleased material and re-pressed older, out-of-print material. In 1999, the year of his death, twenty-two new (and old) albums and EPs on several media were released.

Strongly opposed to the use of computers and samplers in music, Jones always recorded his music with old analog equipment, but never equipment from the United States or Japan.[citation needed] He would record himself playing various Middle Eastern instruments and record voices of Middle Eastern people from old tapes. Jones's music was heavily percussive; a review of a rare live performance notes that Jones used a "backing DAT tape with pretty harsh, rhythmic textures, his sort of patented spiralling hypnotic beat, to which he played on two or three different drums with great skill."[2] He never looped his music; it was all recorded live, and edited/mixed afterwards. The end result was often loud and staticky, with sudden changes in volume. Jones was never concerned with how many copies of his record were sold, or even how much listeners enjoyed his music, but rather how original his music was.

The Muslimgauze discography is vast. He released over 90 original albums on 32 different record labels, creating nearly 2,000 original songs. Many of his pieces were inspired by political facts or events. Many of his releases have been re-pressed as, after 1994, most of his albums were released in limited editions of 200–1000. Including re-pressings, he has 180 releases at the time of this writing, but the number is rapidly increasing.

Jones disliked live shows and was rarely asked to do them, so Muslimgauze performances were very rare, though he did quite a few for Law & Auder. He always stated that he never had time to listen to other people's music, although in a 1992 interview with Impulse Magazine, he mentioned that he enjoyed traditional music of Japan, the Middle East, and India, as well as the works of artists such as Can, Throbbing Gristle, Wire, and Faust. However, despite a few collaborations, Jones didn't trust anyone when it came to remixing his music. Instead, he would usually take pieces of music that were sent to him and remix them to his own liking.

[edit] Death

On Wednesday, December 30, 1998, Bryn was rushed to the hospital in Manchester with a rare fungal infection in his bloodstream, for which he had to be heavily sedated. His body eventually shut down, and he died at 22:50 GMT on Thursday, January 14, 1999.[3] [4]

[edit] Discography

Main article: Bryn Jones discography

[edit] Live Performances

During his performances he would play a percussion instrument accompanied by pre-recorded loops or other musicians. On the occasion of his 1998 performance in Stockholm, the MS Stubnitz was shut down by authorities before he arrived, and so he performed outdoors. Since many ticket holders were not allowed inside the venue, Muslimgauze was the only act they were able to see. The recorded concert has been widely distributed over the internet.

Date
(Year-Month-Day)		 Country-Province-City Venue Event Release status
1993-07-06 UK-England-Manchester Turkish Baths Arabbox
1995-09-XX UK-Scotland-Edinburgh
1995-10-08 UK-Yorkshire-Edinburgh Cafe Mex Sunday Service
1996-02-18 UK-Yorkshire-Leeds The Duchess Sunday Service
1996-05-26 UK-Yorkshire-Leeds The Duchess Sunday Service
1996-08-24 Germany-Berlin Staalplaat Sonderangebot Festival
1996-10-17 UK-Yorkshire-Leeds Le Phono Brainticket
1997-06-22[1] Germany-Rostock MS Stubnitz/Rostock Harbor
1997-07-XX Spain 4 am in a Spanish bull ring
1997-11-01 UK-Yorkshire-Leeds The Duchess Tandoori Space
1998-01-27 Japan-Shibuya Club Shibuya On Air West
1998-06-13[2] Sweden-Stockholm MS Stubnitz Nursery Injection Festival
1998-09-XX France-Normandy The Monastery Of Sound
1998-10-28 UK-Yorkshire-Leeds The Cockpit Tandoori Space
1998-11-2X Germany-Berlin Volksbühne Ballroom International

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Gehr, Richard (1994-10-28). Muslimgauze: Beyond The Veil. The Edge, s.v. "Muslimgauze"; originally appeared in The Village Voice, 28 October 1994. Retrieved on 2007-02-04.
  2. ^ Sahlén, Mårten (1999-02-21). Muslimgauze in Stockholm. Retrieved on 2006-10-28.
  3. ^ Strauss, Neil. "Bryn Jones, 38, Musician Known as Muslimgauze" (fee required), The New York Times, 1999-01-28. Retrieved on 2006-10-28. 
  4. ^ Strauss, Neil. "Bryn Jones, Pro-Palestinian Music Innovator, Dies at 38" (reprint), The New York Times. Retrieved on 2006-10-28. 

[edit] External links


Persondata
NAME Jones, Bryn
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Muslimgauze
SHORT DESCRIPTION British electronic music artist
DATE OF BIRTH June 17, 1961
PLACE OF BIRTH Manchester, England, United Kingdom
DATE OF DEATH January 14, 1999
PLACE OF DEATH Manchester, England, United Kingdom