Tashi Dorji + Tyler Damon | Arts + Literature Laboratory | Madison Contemporary Arts Center

Tashi Dorji + Tyler Damon

On Friday, September 15, 2017, Arts + Literature Laboratory presents the improvisational duo Tashi Dorji (electric guitar) and Tyler Damon (drums/percussion). Tickets are $10 online at dorjidamon.bpt.me or at the door. Online sales end 1 hour before the show. Doors open at 7:30pm. Show starts at 8pm.

"Tashi Dorji (electric guitar) & Tyler Damon (drums/percussion) reside in separate locales but have come together from a place of mutual admiration. The pair has scarcely spoken of intention regarding their music yet conjure a sound which suggests the familiar and the non-idiomatic at once. Flashes of ecstatic intensity, blurred timbral lines, fractal repetition, noir-ish, cinematic mystery and inclinations toward free play hint that the two are pleased to follow a winding path to destinations yet unknown. Dorji & Damon released their debut studio LP, Both Will Escape, and a cassette of live recordings, Live At The Spot +1, in 2016 on the Family Vineyard and Astral Spirits labels.

"Although the duo are playing in real time, they manage to embed action within action [...] The music is a bit like a set of Russian nesting dolls that aspires to challenge succession rather than confirm it." - Bill Meyer on Both Will Escape & Live At The Spot+1, Wire Magazine #393

"Together, the combination of Dorji's high-end metallic power-tool skree and Damon's manic-but-earthy hippie clomping are a perfect pairing. Each has a musical spoon in the other guy's soup to begin with, resulting in a collaboration that seems almost brotherly. [...] I'd say expect great things, but they're already happening." - Tom Burris on Both Will Escape, The Free Jazz Collective

Tashi Dorji

Tashi Dorji grew up in Bhutan, on the eastern side of the Himalayas. Residing in Asheville since 2000 and soaking up a vast array of music. Along the way, Dorji developed a playing style unbound by tradition, yet with a direct line to intuitive artistry. His recordings feature improvisations that spasmodically grow along tangential, surprising paths. All references break loose during a composition, as Dorji keys into his own inner world.

His compositions drag the listener into a labyrinth of warbling tones, where each sound seems to jump out and replace the eerie silence that would otherwise occupy the atmosphere. The textures remain sustained in the reverberation as the vibration of the strings dwindle and ascend. The experience is one equally disorienting and reflective, in which Dorji’s musicianship brings haunting beauty and mindfulness to the listener. After a handful of releases on various labels since 2009, Dorji presented his debut LP on Hermit Hut, the label created... Read More

Tyler Damon by Tim Barnes

Tyler Damon is a Bloomington, Indiana-based artist whose work aims to reveal obscured and untold narratives via drums/percussion & free improvisation.

Tyler is currently involved in extended duo exhibitions with guitarist Tashi Dorji and bassist Darin Gray (as Duo Oninbo) and is engaged with John Dawson in the shape-shifting outfit Thee Open Sex. He also regularly performs as a soloist.

Other collaborators have included Dave Rempis, Mars Williams, Mette Rasmussen (as a trio w/ Tashi Dorji), Nguyễn Hương (as No Sorry duo), Daniel Carter, Peter Maunu, Ken Vandermark, Little Howlin’ Wolf, Kent Kessler, Albert Wildeman, Jason Adasiewicz, Jason Stein, Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, Robert Beatty, Muyassar Kurdi, Pham Tam (of Dom Dom), Hải Duy (of Dom Dom), Ross Hammond, Ed Ricart, Jon Lorenz, Chris Trull (of Grand Ulena, Yowie), Brian Sandstrom, Ben Lumsdaine, Landon Caldwell (of Creeping Pink, Burnt Ones), Mark Tester (of Burnt Ones), Steve Marquette, Kevin Harris, Mark... Read More

PLAN YOUR VISIT

Arts + Literature Laboratory is located at 111 S. Livingston Street #100, Madison, Wisconsin, 53703.

Our galleries are open Tuesday through Friday 10am-5pm and Saturday noon to 5pm, and other programs take place throughout the week. Please check the events calendar and education section for details.

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