SUN RA & HIS ARKESTRA - KINGDOM OF DISCIPLINE (PRE-ORDER)
If something is sold out here, try Bandcamp. If it’s sold out there too, it’s gone.
Hearkening back to the first releases from his own El Saturn record label in the 1950’s, where early Sun Ra records were typically printed in editions of 75 and featured hand-made or pasted-on sleeves, Kingdom of Discipline arrives in 2024 in a physical, hand-made edition of only 75 copies via Dead Currencies.
"You've got a solo, John!" From the opening notes, where we’re dropped in the middle of a rehearsal at Saturn House on Morton Street in West Philadelphia, circa 1978, it’s clear that this is no stuffy jazz label offering. We hear Ra directing some of the legendary cast that would inhabit his Arkestra, even to this day. Marshall Allen is on hand. As is, John Gilmore. This is, essentially, “lo-fi” from one of the inventors of the genre later occupied by punk rock and 90’s slacker indie-rock. It is a poetic symmetry for an artist who recorded to Sound Mirror wire tape machines in the 1940’s and self released home recordings before the great Daniel Johnston was even born. But in some ways, Sun Ra has always been the bridge between jazz and punk rock’s DIY ethos. And not just because the MC5 opened for him in the 1970’s.
Always on the fringes of Jazz, which itself was always on the fringes of the mainstream, contributing to the free-jazz movement, and on the forefront of the outright experimental and the avant-garde, Sun Ra had a direct influence on outsider composers like Terry Riley and La Monte Young, who would later influence John Cale and Lou Reed at the conception of the Velvet Underground. Ra may have even had a legitimate lawsuit against David Bowie and his Ziggy Stardust persona, had he been interested in such lowly earthly pursuits. Of course, these are claims for the consideration of the uninitiated. For the Ra faithful, these tracks offer both, a further revelation, and at times, a fascinating peek behind the curtain at Ra’s mid-late 1970’s Arkestra lineup, one of the most incredible live bands of all time.
Though in the years since his death there have been many official re-releases and complete documents of live shows, as well as themed collections like the ones focused on Ra’s groundbreaking use of early synthesizers, these tracks were selected and sequenced in a way that offers listeners of all stripes a satisfying trip into a universe that Sun Ra built. Outside of being a further testament to the genius of this singular artist, Kingdom of Discipline is also just a damn good record.
Truly mythological characters aren’t as easy to come by in real life as they are in era defining novels or films. Getting to add to the narrative of a great mythological figure in music, by releasing an incredible new collection of unheard material, is a privilege. Sharing it with others is an honor. Doing it justice is a pretty daunting responsibility. Luckily, the mythos and the music that Sun Ra left behind are more than capable of shouldering some of that weight.
This is a pre-order. Orders will ship within 5-7 days of release date.
Releases October 25th 2024
All titles composed by Sun Ra and published by Enterplanetary Koncepts (BMI), except "Sophisticated Lady" by Ellington-Mills- Parish, published by EMI Mills Music-SonyATV Harmony. Produced by Irwin Chusid. Special thanks to Christopher Trent, Robert Campbell, Michael D. Anderson/Sun Ra Music Archive, Joe Lizzi, The Experimental Sound Studio (Chicago). Issued under license from Sun Ra LLC.
If something is sold out here, try Bandcamp. If it’s sold out there too, it’s gone.
Hearkening back to the first releases from his own El Saturn record label in the 1950’s, where early Sun Ra records were typically printed in editions of 75 and featured hand-made or pasted-on sleeves, Kingdom of Discipline arrives in 2024 in a physical, hand-made edition of only 75 copies via Dead Currencies.
"You've got a solo, John!" From the opening notes, where we’re dropped in the middle of a rehearsal at Saturn House on Morton Street in West Philadelphia, circa 1978, it’s clear that this is no stuffy jazz label offering. We hear Ra directing some of the legendary cast that would inhabit his Arkestra, even to this day. Marshall Allen is on hand. As is, John Gilmore. This is, essentially, “lo-fi” from one of the inventors of the genre later occupied by punk rock and 90’s slacker indie-rock. It is a poetic symmetry for an artist who recorded to Sound Mirror wire tape machines in the 1940’s and self released home recordings before the great Daniel Johnston was even born. But in some ways, Sun Ra has always been the bridge between jazz and punk rock’s DIY ethos. And not just because the MC5 opened for him in the 1970’s.
Always on the fringes of Jazz, which itself was always on the fringes of the mainstream, contributing to the free-jazz movement, and on the forefront of the outright experimental and the avant-garde, Sun Ra had a direct influence on outsider composers like Terry Riley and La Monte Young, who would later influence John Cale and Lou Reed at the conception of the Velvet Underground. Ra may have even had a legitimate lawsuit against David Bowie and his Ziggy Stardust persona, had he been interested in such lowly earthly pursuits. Of course, these are claims for the consideration of the uninitiated. For the Ra faithful, these tracks offer both, a further revelation, and at times, a fascinating peek behind the curtain at Ra’s mid-late 1970’s Arkestra lineup, one of the most incredible live bands of all time.
Though in the years since his death there have been many official re-releases and complete documents of live shows, as well as themed collections like the ones focused on Ra’s groundbreaking use of early synthesizers, these tracks were selected and sequenced in a way that offers listeners of all stripes a satisfying trip into a universe that Sun Ra built. Outside of being a further testament to the genius of this singular artist, Kingdom of Discipline is also just a damn good record.
Truly mythological characters aren’t as easy to come by in real life as they are in era defining novels or films. Getting to add to the narrative of a great mythological figure in music, by releasing an incredible new collection of unheard material, is a privilege. Sharing it with others is an honor. Doing it justice is a pretty daunting responsibility. Luckily, the mythos and the music that Sun Ra left behind are more than capable of shouldering some of that weight.
This is a pre-order. Orders will ship within 5-7 days of release date.
Releases October 25th 2024
All titles composed by Sun Ra and published by Enterplanetary Koncepts (BMI), except "Sophisticated Lady" by Ellington-Mills- Parish, published by EMI Mills Music-SonyATV Harmony. Produced by Irwin Chusid. Special thanks to Christopher Trent, Robert Campbell, Michael D. Anderson/Sun Ra Music Archive, Joe Lizzi, The Experimental Sound Studio (Chicago). Issued under license from Sun Ra LLC.
If something is sold out here, try Bandcamp. If it’s sold out there too, it’s gone.
Hearkening back to the first releases from his own El Saturn record label in the 1950’s, where early Sun Ra records were typically printed in editions of 75 and featured hand-made or pasted-on sleeves, Kingdom of Discipline arrives in 2024 in a physical, hand-made edition of only 75 copies via Dead Currencies.
"You've got a solo, John!" From the opening notes, where we’re dropped in the middle of a rehearsal at Saturn House on Morton Street in West Philadelphia, circa 1978, it’s clear that this is no stuffy jazz label offering. We hear Ra directing some of the legendary cast that would inhabit his Arkestra, even to this day. Marshall Allen is on hand. As is, John Gilmore. This is, essentially, “lo-fi” from one of the inventors of the genre later occupied by punk rock and 90’s slacker indie-rock. It is a poetic symmetry for an artist who recorded to Sound Mirror wire tape machines in the 1940’s and self released home recordings before the great Daniel Johnston was even born. But in some ways, Sun Ra has always been the bridge between jazz and punk rock’s DIY ethos. And not just because the MC5 opened for him in the 1970’s.
Always on the fringes of Jazz, which itself was always on the fringes of the mainstream, contributing to the free-jazz movement, and on the forefront of the outright experimental and the avant-garde, Sun Ra had a direct influence on outsider composers like Terry Riley and La Monte Young, who would later influence John Cale and Lou Reed at the conception of the Velvet Underground. Ra may have even had a legitimate lawsuit against David Bowie and his Ziggy Stardust persona, had he been interested in such lowly earthly pursuits. Of course, these are claims for the consideration of the uninitiated. For the Ra faithful, these tracks offer both, a further revelation, and at times, a fascinating peek behind the curtain at Ra’s mid-late 1970’s Arkestra lineup, one of the most incredible live bands of all time.
Though in the years since his death there have been many official re-releases and complete documents of live shows, as well as themed collections like the ones focused on Ra’s groundbreaking use of early synthesizers, these tracks were selected and sequenced in a way that offers listeners of all stripes a satisfying trip into a universe that Sun Ra built. Outside of being a further testament to the genius of this singular artist, Kingdom of Discipline is also just a damn good record.
Truly mythological characters aren’t as easy to come by in real life as they are in era defining novels or films. Getting to add to the narrative of a great mythological figure in music, by releasing an incredible new collection of unheard material, is a privilege. Sharing it with others is an honor. Doing it justice is a pretty daunting responsibility. Luckily, the mythos and the music that Sun Ra left behind are more than capable of shouldering some of that weight.
This is a pre-order. Orders will ship within 5-7 days of release date.
Releases October 25th 2024
All titles composed by Sun Ra and published by Enterplanetary Koncepts (BMI), except "Sophisticated Lady" by Ellington-Mills- Parish, published by EMI Mills Music-SonyATV Harmony. Produced by Irwin Chusid. Special thanks to Christopher Trent, Robert Campbell, Michael D. Anderson/Sun Ra Music Archive, Joe Lizzi, The Experimental Sound Studio (Chicago). Issued under license from Sun Ra LLC.