The status of Canadian post-rock band Godspeed You! Black Emperor has become almost mythical. They don’t do promo, perform in near-darkness, and have no frontperson, but their concerts are intense experiences, built from carefully structured epic compositions, rich arrangements, and volcanic outbursts. Not to be missed!

Their early albums, like 'F#A#∞' (1997) and 'Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven' (2000), are widely regarded as classics that redefined protest music. Live, the experience is amplified with multiple 16mm projectors, overlapping analog film loops, and iconic album artwork. After a seven-year hiatus, the band returned in 2010 and has since captivated audiences worldwide with sold-out shows and acclaimed new releases, including 'NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD'.

Tashi Dorji conjures incredible sounds from a prepared acoustic guitar. His spirited improvisations—recorded live without any loops or effects—evoke a composite of influences from Derek Bailey to Mauritanian pulaar to the traditional music of his native Bhutan. "Growing up in Bhutan with little access to music except random bootlegged cassettes and shortwave radio, I listened to anything i could find," Tashi Dorji writes in an email interview. He learned guitar by ear because "we didn't have music school, TV or internet back then in Bhutan, so we had to use a lot of imagination and improvise what we thought we heard off of a tape player." Tashi Dorji arrived in Asheville, North Carolina as an international student in 2000. He quickly fell in with the vibrant punk rock community, which flowed into free jazz, noise, experimental and other avant garde music. The Appalachian mountain town has become a real hub for experimental music thanks to longstanding acts like Ahleuchatistas, resources like Asheville FM, the shop Harvest Records, tape distributor Tomentosa, and labels like Bathetic and Headway Recordings. Guitar Improvisations, released on cassette by Headway last year, sold out quickly but is available to download from the FMA along with his release sêp. This week, the label unveiled Tashi Dorji's self-titled follow-up, and it's streaming after the jump. Tashi Dorji also has a forthcoming release on Turned Word Records out of Belfast ME, and much more on his bandcamp.

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