Motor Totemist Guild is an American
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band, formed in 1980 in
Orange County, California
Orange County is located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area in Southern California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,186,989, making it the third-most-populous county in California, the sixth-most-populous in the United States, a ...
by band leader James Grigsby.
Described as an
avant-prog
Avant-prog (short for avant-garde progressive rock) is a music genre that appeared in the late 1970s as the extension of two separate progressive rock subgenres: Rock in Opposition (RIO) and the Canterbury scene.
History and characteristics
...
,
avant-rock
Experimental rock, also called avant-rock, is a subgenre of rock music that pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique or which experiments with the basic elements of the genre. Artists aim to liberate and innovate, with ...
and
chamber rock
Chamber pop (or Chamber rock; also called baroque pop and sometimes conflated with orchestral pop or symphonic pop) is a music genre that combines rock music with the intricate use of strings, horns, piano, and vocal harmonies, and other com ...
band,
Motor Totemist Guild was noted for its songs that worked into epic durations and rich instrumentation but also forayed into free improvisation, sound collage, and other
avant-garde
The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...
techniques.
History
Being the only constant member, Grigsby assembled an everchanging lineup, that featured vocalist Emily Hay, as well as Rod Poole (acoustic guitar), Bridget Convey (piano), Hannes Giger (contrabass), and David Kerman (drums). Grigsby disbanded the group in 1989 to focus on the project U-Totem. Nevertheless, Grigsby and Hay reunited the group in 1997 with a largely expanded lineup, including former members Lynn Johnston (clarinets, saxophone) and Eric Johnson-Tamai (bassoon). The new lineup also featured musicians from 1990s West Coast new jazz scene, such as Vinny Golia (clarinets, saxes),
Jeff Kaiser (trumpet), and Brad Dutz (marimba and vibraphone). All of the band's albums were released through Grigsby's own label, Rotary Totem.
Members
*James Grigsby - composition
* Emily Hay - vocals
* Rod Poole - acoustic guitar
* Bridget Convey - piano
* Hannes Giger - contrabass
* David Kerman - drums
* Lynn Johnston - clarinets, saxophone
* Eric Johnson-Tamai - bassoon
*
Vinny Golia
Vinny Golia (born March 1, 1946) is an American composer and multi-instrumentalist specializing in woodwind instruments. He performs in the genres of contemporary music, jazz, free jazz, and free improvisation.
Career
As a composer, Golia fuse ...
- clarinets, saxophone
*
Jeff Kaiser - trumpet
* Brad Dutz - marimba and vibraphone
Discography
Motor Totemist Guild discography as adapted from
Discogs
Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...
:
;Studio albums
* ''Infra Dig'' (1984)
* ''Klang'' (1985)
* ''Contact With Veils'' (1986)
* ''Elements'' (1988)
* ''Shapuno Zoo'' (1988)
* ''Omaggio A Futi'' (1989)
* ''City of Mirrors'' (1999)
* ''All America City'' (2000)
;Singles
* "Sub-Mission" / "Ballad of the Thin Man" (1984)
;Compilations
* ''Archive One'' (1996)
* ''Archive Two'' (1996)
References
External links
*
American experimental rock groups
Progressive rock musical groups from California
Musical groups from Orange County, California
Musical groups established in 1980
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