Loisaida is Spanglish for Lower East Side and describes the Hispanic quarter of New York’s Alphabet City (Avenue A, B, C & D). Produced by Elliott Sharp on his Zoar label, this LP presents No Wave/Avant Jazz bands from this Downtown neighborhood ca. 1982. This is the area where Fred Frith lived when he moved to New York – it is mentioned at the back of the Gravity LP. Actually, Bands of Loisaida could pass for a prefiguration of another Elliott Sharp compilation, the monumental Island Of Sanity 2xLP, published 1987 with more or less the same suspects.
♫ All bands on Loisaida mix a proportion of no wave/post punk energy with various degrees of free jazz saxophone. The tracks exhude freshness and urgency and some are indeed recorded live (V-Effect). Bands of Loisaida is a feast of DNA-like erratic rhythms, spasmodic guitar style a la Arto Lindsay, and John Zorn sax eruptions. The A side features vocals, with the exasperating, pretentious Downtown accent we all love. The B side offers some stunning instrumental tracks and more developped interplay. The Ordinaires two tracks include a string section and elaborated solo violin parts and saxophone blasts (more Ordinaires member, Kurt Hoffman’s solo music here).
01 V-Effect Lecture On Eighth Avenue (4:42)
02 V-Effect They Can’t Get It (2:55)
03 The Scene Is Now Wake Up And Smell The Coffee (2:14)
04 The Scene Is Now Finding Someone (2:27)
05 Crazy Hearts Arms Are Up (3:00)
06 Crazy Hearts This Is An Experiment (3:23)
07 ISM Sample/Hold (5:38)
08 Mofungo Responsible (1:53)
09 Mofungo Room On The Street (2:07)
10 The State Roughage (4:28)
11 The State Jargon (2:21)
12 The Ordinaires Intravenous (3:44)
13 The Ordinaires Courage (3:49)
14 Hi-Sheriffs Of Blue My Big Vacation (1:53)
15 Hi-Sheriffs Of Blue Broadcast System Emergency (4:33)
Total time 49:00
LP released by Zoar Records, ZOAR#09, NYC, New York, 1982
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I remember this !!
learned something once again – didn’t know that “loisada” is the hispanic accentuated “lower eastside”.
and – thanks for another stunning share, continuo! i love the compilations elliot sharp (e#) put out, posted one from 1990 here.
salut
Ronald Reagan had such a good effect on music, it seems.
I remember when this and State of the Union seemed like a peek into a magical scene. I was particularly gaga over V Effect at the time (I don’t think Stop Those Songs had been released yet). Someone was supposed to be reissuing Stop, but it’s yet to appear.
The download, label, Anthology Recordings, reissued a rare cassette only release, Tape #1, with early Mofungo, and Rick Brown’s first groups, Information and Blinding Headache? It includes 43 tracks and a 21 page .pdf. Their website appears to be on hiatus, but indicates they’ll be back soon.
Never heard of Anthology Recordings. A pity to be such a late comer, as they seem to have digitized interesting music.
Thanks, I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this! Love punk jazz.
You’re welcome.
anybody still have this?
Merci pour cette compilation, très bonne de bout en bout en effet !