Avant/experimental trumpeter Liz Allbee, or Liz Albee, or Li z Al(l)bee, has been playing live in the San Francisco Bay Area for the past 6 years in many local combos, as well as solo. Her performances cross free-jazz, noise, improv, and punk boundaries with abandon, and involve dress-ups and all manner of sound-making devices. She has come to view the trumpet as “…more of an interface than an instrument,” and continuously adds more electronics and extended techniques, including the conch shell which has become central to her work. She notes that it eschews any issues of virtuosity (so prevalent in jazz).
On her debut solo album
Quarry Tones released on Resipiscent in 2006, the conch was used for almost ¾ of the source material. (The album comes in a hand sewn felt pouch, and has been described, delightfully, as “drone-pop noise miniatures”).
Allbee has also appeared on the UK esoteric and limited editions label Paradigms Recordings (Amber Asylum,
Garden Of Love, CD, 2006) and the eccentric and charmingly named Ultra Eczema in Belgium (Hans Grüsel's Krankenkabinet,
Another Miserable Day, 12", 2006).
She is one half of Marauder and Alibi with Jason Stamberger. Together they have played ceiling fans, roofing metal, vacuum hoses, metal detectors, oscillators, trumpets, shells and other objects. They have released two albums;
Multiplicator (Metallic Polygon Records - 2002), and
Elegy For An Unknown Pornographic Actress (Metallic Polygon Records - 2003), they have performed live scores to film, contributed to various compilations and performed countless shows. They are currently composing for the play “Winterland” with the Yugen Noh Theater of San Francisco, to be premiered in July 2007. Allbee is also a member of Le Flange du Mal, a group formed in 2003 and described as noise-jazz, dance-metal, and she is involved with Murdermurder.
Liz Allbee has played/recorded with: Leo Smith, Fred Frith, Anthony Braxton, Cecil Taylor, ZeekSheck, Hans Grüsel, Obscuratron, John Shiurba, Scott Rosenberg, Dan Plonsey, Matt Ingalls, L.A.’s own Sarabassoon, and Porest (aka Mark Gergis).
> www.lizallbee.net
> www.myspace.com/lizallbee
Appearances:
> CTM.07 > ARTICULATING SILENCE & SOUND
