West Coast Avant Jazz / 9 Winds Label Artists

Anyone here familiar with or fans of the whole West Coast avant jazz/improv contingent that frequents labels like 9 Winds, Cryptogrammophone and the like?

Having once lived in the L.A. area, I got to hear some unique and interesting music from this crowd of different stripes, some of the better known participants :

Alex Cline (drums, percussion)

Nels Cline (guitar, now playing with Wilco when he isn't doing his crazy exploratory solo thing)

Wayne Peet (keyboards, piano, organ)

Steuart Liebig (bass)

Vinny Golia (multiple woodwinds, founder of 9 Winds Records)

Wayne Peet plays with a ton of people around L.A. and has been known to release some very unique things like "BLASTO", his quirky take on the jazz-funk equation (think Herbie's Headhunters and Stravinsky putting their heads together). or "Fully Engufed", his quirky take on the Tony Williams Lifetime organ trio paradigm that is NOT  a clone but genuinely does something unique with it.

Vinny Golia, a former visual artist and self-taught saxophonist/composer has done things ranging from solo woodwind recordings to large ensembles that get closer to modern classical than straight jazz as such.

Bassist Steuart Liebig having some serious compositional study behind him, has written things ranging from feisty quartet outings to serious chamber and large ensemble works, in an ongoing quest to combine composition and free improvisation no matter what the context.

Drummer/Percussionist Alex Cline is known for his haunting and beautiful compositions as well as his amazingly versatile drumming. "Sparks Fly Upward" is an amazing album well worth investigating.

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