The Muffins

"The Muffins are the most important prog band the US has produced..t.he high quality of the music...should make my contention feasible to anyone with ears." – The Wire [4/23] "The Muffins were an American band from the Washington, D.C. area...Their complex approach wove Canterbury-esque prog, electric fusion, vanguard jazz, modern classical composition, and free improvisation in a sound so ambitiously creative, it's difficult to easily categorize." – AllMusic BAKER'S DOZEN <a href=" Dozen by The Muffins</a> RUNE 500/512 It is an all-too-rare occurrence for a band, throughout its career, to create music that continually pushes the envelope and transforms the landscape. It is an even rarer occurrence for such a band to reunite after a long separation, and embark on a second musical career that continues to be as innovative as the first. The Muffins, a group equally influenced by the then-current British progressive rock sounds of bands such as Henry Cow, National Health and Soft Machine as they were by contemporary American jazz and improvisational artists like Anthony Braxton, The Art Ensemble of Chicago, Sun Ra and Miles Davis, were formed in Washington, DC in the early 1970s and recorded three albums before disbanding in 1981. In 1998 the group reformed and recorded a further six albums. AllMusic describes their music as a 'unique blend of Canterbury progressive, fusion, improvisation and much more.' During their two lifetimes, the band performed at now legendary festival events, including the ZU Festival (NYC), the Rock In Opposition Festival (France), the Villa Celimontana Jazz Festival (Rome), Sonic Circuits (D.C.) and NEARFest (Bethlehem, PA), among many others. The band were a hugely creative force during both lifetimes, combing intense, rehearsal intensive compositions with spirited free play, and moving effortlessly between musical boundaries and genres. They were one of the great American contemporary music ensembles of our time . Baker’s Dozen is a 13 disc box set of nearly all previously unreleased live and studio recordings from 1975 - 2010 ! It includes 12 CDs, a DVD, and a huge, informative booklet . The entire box is a treasure trove of never seen and never heard material. Baker's Dozen press release Buy this album DOUBLE NEGATIVE <a href=" Negative by The Muffins</a> RUNE 199 In 1998, The Muffins reformed with all four members, and it proved to be the genuine article. Double Negative is The Muffins' second studio recording released since reforming and possibly the most ambitious work of their career. Featuring 75 minutes of music spread over 17 songs, Double Negative is The Muffins' most compositionally diverse work, featuring pieces that vary in style and tone greatly, but which are always theirs (although they might fool you for a bit here and there!). The Muffins have long been noted for the way they craft memorable themes with adventurous musical structures and this is no exception. In addition, it is the band's most instrumentally rich work, featuring an unprecedented number of musical guest appearances. Two principal members of the Sun Ra, Arkestra , Marshall Allen and Knoel Scott, play sax on several tracks, while longtime Muffins contributor, Doug Elliott, contributes excellent trombone parts to half the pieces, and string players also contribute. Buy this album BANDWIDTH <a href=" by The Muffins</a> RUNE 161 In a very happy occurance, all four members of the band (Dave Newhouse-keyboards & reeds, Thomas Frasier Scott-reeds, Billy Swann-bass & guitar and Paul Sears-drums) reformed in 1998 and began developing a new repertoire and performing concerts. In a world glutted with half-baked reformations by bands looking to cash in on past glories, Bandwidth is the genuine article; a reformation of all the original members who who have gotten together not for money, but because they miss what they had done together in the past and who feel that