“An immediate assessment of sound and silence”

During one night in July 2012, Joshua Abrams made his improvised solo bass album Excavations 1.

Why is the record called Excavations 1? 

It is a record of solo bass improvisation, metaphors of unearthing and discovering felt accurate when I was coming up with the title.

Is there a 2 or more coming up? 

Hopefully so, it is a process that I enjoy & want to continue. 

Why did you want to make this record as a solo record? 

It is a lone endeavor, very different than improvising with others. Playing solo calls for an immediate assessment of sound and silence. It demands that I have patience and that feels like a healthy requirement.

Why did you want to make this record a bass oriented record? 

I’ve been playing the bass for almost 3 decades. It is the instrument with which I have the most fluency and i feel I’ve developed a personal sound on the bass more than on any other instrument. I love the textural nuances that are possible on the instrument. Often when playing with other instruments these sounds are too small or subtle to really cut through, so playing solo is a good context for this type of exploration. 

Why is there almost 6 years between the recording and the release? 

It took a while to find the right home for the record. Mostly because I’ve been busy with other musical pursuits such as my group Natural Information Society, writing music for films and taking care of my daughter.

Why did you decide to do no edits?

Because I wanted it to reflect something like a live performance. Made in the moment rather than through studio technology.

Why did you record on tape?

I like the sound. 

Do you see what you do on this record as jazz or experimental?

I see this recording as connected to both the lineages and histories of both of these terms. I don’t really worry too much about the aesthetic categorization of the record, it could be called many things. 

Do you feel like, when you play the bass, that you carry the history of the instrument with you? 

Yes!

– Joeri Bruyninckx

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