CALLAHAN & WITSCHER is the project of NYC-based musicians Jack Callahan and Jeff Witscher. Witscher has been one of the most daring voices in underground American music for two decades, highlighted by releases on Pan and NNA Tapes. Callahan’s focused, uncompromising approach to sound caught the attention of both Demdike Stare’s DDS label and Swiss composer Jürg Frey, who took Callahan on as his first composition student. Fans of their individual work might expect opacity, disruption, or rhythmic irregularity from their collaboration, but their debut LP ‘Think Differently’ sounds like a pitbull in a convertible, a sand-kicking beach party, the dopamine hit you get from 311 or Smash Mouth. It’s a punchy, crunchy, highly infectious record. How did Callahan & Witscher cut the path from the ghostly margins of avant garde musics to the gutters of post-grunge American hard rock? In the words of Callahan, “at some point, you start to need a stronger drug.”
The most potent characteristic of this stronger drug is the guitar. And not just any guitar, but a sassy, contagious, blithe guitar. Its presence is a drastic shift for two guys who’ve combined to make dozens of records over the years, not a single one of which has a recognizable guitar sound on it. Alongside the cool breezes and hyperactive fretwork of Callahan’s guitar playing, the songs are backboned by strutting, groove-happy vocals: all bark, all bite. Every song is a careful collage, light but dense, ornate with gang choruses, soulful femme vocals, autotune and whisper scratches. This accumulation almost manages to hide the record’s potent undertow of dread. ‘Think differently’ was released by Post Present Medium last September.
BLUES ANGLES are a two piece formed in 2023 comprising Sian Dorrer (Ravioli Me Away, HMS RMA, Bomber Jackets and Plug) and David Campbell (I’m Being Good and Nightshift). They make music by recycling rhythms, lyrics and melodies to create their own home studio recorded offerings. Influences range from Ween to The Glitter band. Their first recording was the Ruby themed ‘Ruby demos’ which was written to celebrate their friend’s Ruby Wedding anniversary. 2025 foretells an album, European summer tour and specially commissioned song about wine.
Presented by Upset The Rhythm.
This is an 18+ event
07:30 PM- 11:00 PM