01	Shortwave Longride						03:04
	02	Pleasure Island						06:11
	03	I'm A Pterodactyl						03:05
	04	Why Not Circulate						04:01
	05	Sled						04:55
	06	The Simpsons						02:00
	07	Tyronglaea II						05:25
	08	Papercutstone						04:58
	09	Sombre Reptiles						04:05
	10	Nothing But Trouble						02:03
	11	Tomorrow Never Came						04:11
	12	Our Prayer						02:34

Pyroclastics
Released: 1992, CD/Cassette Cuneiform Rune 35

Ken Field - alto and soprano sax, synthesizer, percussion
Erik Lindgren - piano, samples, drum machine, percussion
Rick Scott - synthesizer, percussion
Martin Swope - guitar, percussion
and
Willie Alexander - percussion (tracks 4,7)
Ken Winokur - percussion (tracks 4,6)


Artist Birdsongs of the Mesozoic
Album Title Pyroclastics
Date of Release Jun 1991

With Pyroclastics, Birdsongs of the Mesozoic returned somewhat to its roots. Its signature sound - pulsing keyboards, jagged harmonies, weird time signatures, slash-and-burn guitar - is back stronger than ever; "Shortwave Longride" and "Pleasure Island" would both have sounded more or less at home on Magnetic Flip (except for the presence of Ken Field's saxophone). And the band's hilarious rendition of the theme from The Simpsons is a wry look backwards as well, a reminder of the arrangement of the Rocky and Bullwinkle theme on their first album. Field has managed to insinuate himself so seamlessly into the Birdsongs sound by this point that while his saxophone lines do alter it noticeably, they do so subtly and from the inside - note, in particular, the subtle jazz flavoring he gives to "Tyronglaea II" (otherwise an archetypal piece of old-fashioned Mesozoicism). The band also takes another run at Brian Eno's "Sombre Reptiles" (a piece they had tackled in an unreleased recording from 1983) and comes up with a surprisingly gentle (if ultimately unremarkable) rendition of Brian Wilson's hymn-like "Our Prayer." Pyroclastics definitely marks a step forward for this band, but it remains rooted in its old strengths. Recommended. - Rick Anderson

1. Shortwave Longride (Lindgren) - 2:59
2. Pleasure Island (Lindgren) - 6:06
3. I'm a Pterodactyl (Swope) - 2:57
4. Why Not Circulate (Field) - 3:54
5. Sled (Lindgren) - 4:51
6. The Simpsons (Elfman) - 1:57
7. Tyronglaea II (Lindgren) - 5:20
8. Papercutstone (Swope) - 4:51
9. Sombre Reptiles (Eno) - 3:59
10. Nothing But Trouble (Lindgren) - 1:59
11. Tomorrow Never Came (Lindgren) - 4:04
12. Our Prayer (Wilson) - 2:34

Birdsongs of the Mesozoic - Producer
Willie "Loco" Alexander - Percussion
Erik Lindgren - Percussion, Piano, Keyboards, Sampling, Drum Machine
Ken Field - Synthesizer, Percussion, Saxophone, Sax (Alto), Sax (Soprano)
Roger Seibel - Digital Mastering
Martin Swope - Guitar, Percussion
Ken Winokur - Percussion
Bob Winsor - Producer, Engineer, Mixdown Engineer
Nancy Given - Artwork
Richard Scott - Percussion, Keyboards
Rick Scott - Synthesizer, Percussion

1991 CD Cuneiform RUNE-35-CD
1991 LP Cuneiform RUNE-35
1995 CS Cuneiform 35





Alternative Press review of Pyroclastics
by Michael C. Mahan

Boston's proud contribution to the world of true progressive music present their sixth, and possible their strongest, album to date. Originally intended as a side project for Mission of Burma guitarists Roger Miller and Martin Swope, the Birdsongs have continued long after the Mission collapsed.

Miller left the band in 1988, and this record showcases Swope's last contribution, but keyboard/percussionists Erik Lindgren and Rick Scott, complemented by saxophonist Ken Field, remain. The results are staggering.

The Birdsongs have always exhibited a mesmerizingly complex use of keys and guitar, perpetually changing with a blend of Rock-in-Opposition precision and joyful abandon. Field's sax adds emotion to the mix. His work is reminiscent of the heartfelt wailing of Roxy's Andy Mackay as well as the fusion-laced playfulness of Piirpauke's Sakari Kukko.

This record features three covers. There is a faithful rendering of Eno's "Sombre Reptiles", a hymn-like interpretation of Brian Wilson's "Our Prayer," and a downright silly serving of Dan Elfman's TV theme for The Simpsons.

Of the two stand-out originals, one is itself a derivation. Lindgren's "Tomorrow Never Came" contains the same melodic flow of the Beatles' "Tomorrow Never Knows", but is played with the same wondeful jazz abandon that characterizes the Scandanavian fusion sound. The other stand-out is "Why Not Circulate", Field's playful bossa-nova, featuring a delightful mix of heavy-metal guitar, folk fusion lead sax, and Latin-flavored piano/percussion rhythms. This record is a pure delight.

a Boston band that compresses Stravinsky, Steve Reich, and Question Mark and the Mysterians into keyboard driven stomps.
- Jon Pareles
The New York Times











It seems obvious to say that there is no other band quite like Birdsongs of the Mesozoic. Often whimsical, often complex, often beautiful (and often all in the same song), Birdsongs of the Mesozoic has been able to write music that always inspires and captivates. With their latest release Petrophonics (Cuneiform Records, 2000), Birdsongs of the Mesozoic have once again delighted their fans and critics alike. Now with ideas for the future, including an artist workshop in no less a venue than Hawaii, maybe the 21st century will be the age of the Mesozoic. Recently, Ken Field (flutes, saxophone, percussion) and Erik Lindgren (piano) were kind enough to give us a little bit of their time.




A lot of different people have tried to describe your music over the years, some more successfully than others. I'm curious: How would you describe Birdsongs of the Mesozoic?
Ken: I use the phrase "instrumental modern music ensemble." We play instrumental music, and I hope that what we are doing is somehow different from what has come before, hence "modern." I also find that a good way to describe our sound is to list our instrumentation of piano, synthesizer, guitar, woodwinds, and computer.

Erik: Birdsongs is a collective of like-minded individuals who appreciate progressive music. We are all classically trained and accomplished on our instruments. It's also a composers' collective since all four members write material for the group. The group also fronts as a social club since we enjoy each other's company and camaraderie.

Musically, each of us has our own individual slant. I draw inspiration from 20th Century classical composers including Satie, Debussy, Stravinsky, and Reich along with '60s garage/psychedelic rock. Michael is influenced by techno and Bulgarian music. Ken likes new world and improvised music while Rick is into jazz and classical. Our influences are extremely diverse which makes the group a unique sonic bouillabaisse.


When it comes to the act of composing the music, how prepared are the pieces before they are presented to the group?

Ken: Generally each piece is fully composed by one of us when it is brought in for rehearsal. Sometimes a preliminary sketch is presented so that the composer can get a better sense of how the piece sounds. There is often feedback on specific aspects of each piece, but this almost never results in significant enough change to warrant shared composer credit, for example.


Are most of the pieces composed by an individual or is there a lot of group action at work?

Erik: Each composition is written by a specific individual and then worked out at our rehearsals. It's really no different than a string quartet practicing new material since virtually all our music is scored out. There is a common misconception that we are a group that improvises, which is far from the truth.


When composing, how often does the end result reflect your original ideas about a piece of music?

Ken: It varies. Sometimes a composition will sound almost exactly as it was originally conceived, and other times the piece will evolve through time, or as a result of the interpretive abilities of the other band members. I've been pleased to have a few of my compositions performed by other ensembles, including an arrangement of "Why Not Circulate?" (from Pyroclastics) by the Providence Mandolin Orchestra. I certainly did not originally consider this instrumentation when I wrote the piece, but it worked great!

Erik: Often I approach a piece of music as a concept or exercise. "Birdhead" off of Petrophonics was a through-composed piece of music, which was laid over a pre-existing 4/4 percussion track. I wanted to hear the result of creating a piece that constantly changed meter on top of a simple 4/4 groove.

Currently I decided to do three contemporary arrangements of African-American spirituals and will be incorporating sampled voice of my good friend and bass baritone Oral Moses. This will break tradition for Birdsongs, which up until now has only done instrumental pieces.


What are your influences? How do you think these have affected your compositions, if at all?

Erik: Despite the fact that I am coming from a relatively traditional classical background, both edgy and innovative '60s rock has always been a big influence on me. Back in 1977 when I was working on my Master's degree in composition/piano at the University of Iowa, I remember giving a lecture on '60s rock to my peers and they simply didn't get it. They were absolutely horrified when I played songs by the Seeds and 13th Floor Elevators. One grad student even remarked, "Yes, I remember that song [which was "Pushin' To Hard" by the Seeds] but do you really consider that music?" Finally at the end of the hour, one of the doctoral students was hip to the Velvet Underground so at least someone else could draw a connection between serious music and rock.

Ken: Each of us has a very different set of musical influences, and I think that this lends itself handily to the unique "stew" that is Birdsongs. I myself have a background in rhythmically based music, including African and Jamaican music, and funk and R&B. I have been listening lately to a lot of New Orleans music. My contributions to the Birdsongs repertoire generally convey this rhythmic sensibility.


It seems that earlier recordings, such as Magnetic Flip and Faultline have a small element of humor in them, an element which does not appear to be present on Petrophonics. Would you agree? If so, Do you think this is a natural thing that comes from the changing of a line-up or is something more conscious involved?

Erik: Actually that's a good observation and perhaps we should lighten up a bit. It seems that in time our music has been getting more and more sophisticated which doesn't always lend itself to humor. I recently heard a recording of our last performance with Roger Miller at the North Shore Music Circus in 1987 and it was really out there. I think some of the melodic content we used was a bit quirkier and angular back then.

Ken: I agree - that's a good observation. The most obvious indicator is the absence on Petrophonics of our traditional humorous cover tune. I'm not sure that we've lost our sense of humor though, and there certainly wasn't a conscious decision to become more serious.


I'm curious about the use of electronic and programmed percussion. It seems that in most "progressive" outfits these days electronic percussion is usually considered shunned, maybe due to the lack of originality in the programming or the lack of energy that electronic drums usually create. Why has Birdsongs decided to rely more on electronic drums instead of bringing in more actual flesh and blood? Is it an issue of convenience or art?

Ken: I'd have to say that this is an issue of convenience. I personally would love to have a full-time drummer and/or percussionist, but it is just not feasible for us. On the other hand, we try to use electronic elements in our music in a way that really emphasizes their positive musical potential; for example to play parts that might be difficult or impossible for a human to play. Many aspects of our instrumentation impose various constraints on our music. All composing involves consideration of performance constraints, and this issue falls into that category. By the way, I think that the sequencing that Michael does for Birdsongs far exceeds the norm in terms of the level of originality and energy his programming brings to our music.

Erik: We have found that four is the magic number. In the early '80s Birdsongs actually had a fifth member who was a percussionist. But for practical reasons, adding a drummer creates a whole new set of problems. First, the overall volume level immediately goes up which is something I don't think we want to confront. Second, there is a logistic problem since we already take up a fair amount of space on stage. And third, it would be difficult to fit another member in a mini-van when we travel. With that said, the group really does appreciate acoustic percussion rather than working with a sequenced part triggering sound modules.


How do you avoid the problems and pitfalls mentioned above that so many other bands fall into when using electronics?

Erik: I take the approach that "not everything is bad with technology" and then go from there. Compositionally I write very different than today's "cut and paste" approach which is essentially what the hip-hop community is all about. Remember, I come from a tradition in which musical ideas are through-composed and constantly changing rather than looped and copied. I like music that evolves as in the sonata form, which makes a statement, develops it, and then recapitulates the ideas but never just repeats the same notes.


Ken, I saw on the website that among everything you are doing, you are also composing for "Sesame Street." How did that come about, and how is that different - or the same - as composing for Birdsongs?

Ken: I work with my wife, Karen Aqua, who makes animated pieces for Sesame Street. I often tell people that I got my job doing music for Sesame Street by sleeping with the right person, which is exactly true... Composing for Sesame Street is quite different from composing for Birdsongs in several ways. First of all, the pieces are generally short - 30 seconds to one minute. I usually write for layered saxophones and percussion, much like my solo work but different from Birdsongs' instrumentation. Finally, I am almost always writing to an existing animation, which has an impact on the music, of course. I have included some of my Sesame Street compositions on my most recent solo CD, and it is not impossible that I might develop one or two for a future Birdsongs CD. We'll see.



Birdsongs is planning to do a workshop in Hawaii in the near future. What are the plans for this workshop?
This is tentatively scheduled for December 2002 or January 2003. If we get a minimum number of people enrolling, Birdsongs would offer daily sessions in music composition, music business and public relations, instrumental performance, music synthesis, and other topics, and the week would culminate in a public performance by Birdsongs in collaboration with workshop participants. We will decide shortly if there are enough participants to make this possible. Please contact us immediately if you are interested! [Contact Birdsongs of the Mesozoic via their website (see link below) to see if it's not too late. - Ed.]


Is this the first time Birdsongs has done something like this before, either as a group or as individuals?

Erik: In the first half of the '90s, Birdsongs did a bunch of artist-in-residence stints in which we integrated with an academic community for a couple of days. This was really inspiring to mingle with serious students and their instructors. We would love to work with other progressive musicians over an extended period of time. Having been to Kalani Honua on the Big Island in Hawaii, it would be an incredible experience for all involved!

Ken: Birdsongs has done numerous workshops and residencies all over the US, both as a group and as individuals, including at Alfred University (NY), Western New Mexico University, Sheridan College (WY), the Artists' Association of Nantucket (MA), Camden-Rockport High School/YouthArts (ME), New Mexico Military Institute, the Carolina Film Festival (NC), Emory University (GA), the University of North Carolina, Hilo & Waiakea High Schools (HI), Dartmouth College (NH), the Massachusetts College of Art (MA), Lebanon Valley College (PA), the Boston Museum of Science (MA), the Creative Music Orchestra (New Haven, CT), and, with Delfeayo Marsalis, the Nunez Correctional Learning Center (Port Sulpher, LA).

I'm sure that people will attend hoping to learn a lot, but I'm curious about what you hope to get out of this - not in a selfish sort of way, but I'm sure that the learning and creative processes work both ways.

Ken: There will be time in the schedule for us to work as a group writing and rehearsing new music. And the surroundings will certainly enhance our creative juices, both during and after the workshop!

Erik: When you talk, you don't learn. It will obviously be a two-way street where we expound our knowledge but would hope to pick up a bunch of tricks from the people who would attend.


When is Magnetic Flip going to be released (or re-released?) on CD?

Ken: Much of Magnetic Flip is on the Rykodisc 1988 CD Sonic Geology, which is unfortunately out of print. We hope that at some point someone manages to re-release it, but there are currently no plans to do so.

Erik: This has been discussed with Cuneiform and may possibly come to fruition in the future. Along with adding the tracks we had to leave off of Sonic Geology, we have some music videos, which were produced during the '80s and would be great to encode as bonus material on a disc. To do it right, I think we'd have to do a 2-CD set, which might not make financial sense. Unfortunately a record label will have to look at the bottom line and we are not always a money-making machine. Fortunately Steve Feigenbaum has been a tremendous supporter of the group and continues to believe in the group. I'm not only proud of our musical legacy, but the fact that four guys in their late 40s/early 50s can continue to make cutting edge music that appeals to a broad audience. That's what it's all about!


What does the future hold for you guys?

Erik: We continue to evolve using new technologies and discover new musical influences. Nothing remains the same and we always want to be remembered as a forward-thinking ensemble.

Ken: We are currently working on a new CD, scheduled for release in January 2003 on Cuneiform. It is sounding great so far, and we are excited about it. Thanks very much to all our old and new (and future!) fans for your support, and for allowing us to continue to make music that we love.