![\"MGrockwoodreleaseparty\"](\"http:\/\/www.audiofemme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/MGrockwoodreleaseparty.jpg\")
<\/a>The house was packed at Rockwood Music Hall for the album release party of Beat Music this April 25th. \u00a0A solid vehicle for Mark Guiliana’s<\/a> <\/strong>signature brand of drumming, Beat Music combines jazz, rock, drum n’ bass, experimental electronic, and more, and melds these styles into a new amalgamated genre. \u00a0Modern Drummer magazine states Mark Guiliana \u201cmay well be at the forefront of an exciting new style of drumming.\u201d \u00a0Guiliana’s\u00a0precise yet unpredictable technique is thrilling to experience. \u00a0An equally eclectic cast of musicians joined him on stage for a night of densely packed\u00a0rhythms and dark yet danceable electro-inspired hooks.<\/p>\nGuiliana gained acclaim for his long-time partnership with jazz bassist Avishai Cohen<\/a><\/strong>. \u00a0The pair toured internationally, and notably played and recorded at world class jazz club Blue Note, among other such venues. \u00a0Guiliana joined the electro-groove trio Now vs. Now with keyboardist Jason Lindner<\/a><\/strong> and bassist Panagiotis Andreou<\/a><\/strong>, and the group continues to perform in New York City and abroad. \u00a0Beat Music is a new iteration of Guiliana’s highly stylized drumming and original compositions. \u00a0This release marks the first album under the Beat Music moniker.<\/p>\n To pin down Mark Guiliana’s style is tricky, as he seems to have created his own technique. \u00a0He continually changes up rate, phrasing, dynamics and instrumentation so his sound constantly evolves. \u00a0He anchors the music with his aggressive, inventive beats, and simultaneously establishes subtlety and nuance. \u00a0Musicians in the audience were quick to absorb his penchant for a-typical time signatures and mathematical precision.<\/p>\n Steve Wall and Guiliana are responsible for weaving electronic texture into the music. \u00a0 Wall uses a Novation Launchpad<\/a><\/strong> to trigger recorded vocal samples, such as dial tone operator messages and sampled quotes from speeches. \u00a0The recordings sometimes disintegrate into bizarre, warped tones that can give the music a psychedelic feel. \u00a0These speech recordings are interspersed throughout the songs, and add narrative to the set as a whole.<\/p>\n Singer Jeff Taylor<\/a><\/strong> made a guest appearance part way through the set. \u00a0He is the modern jazz rock incarnation of Tom Waits. \u00a0Taylor nearly explodes onstage with energy and a bent towards uninhibited expression. \u00a0He throws wild curve balls with his voice. \u00a0He oscillates between an exposed, breathy pop quality, and a rumbling, raspy low belt that seems unhinged from reality. \u00a0He scats, screams, whispers, croons, and electronically enhances and distorts his voice.<\/p>\n Taylor scaled back a bit for a duet with jazz vocalist Gretchen Parlato<\/a><\/strong>. \u00a0Parlato slowed things down by deploying her smooth, hushed tones on a gentle yet smoldering song “Heernt.” \u00a0She brought some much appreciated femininity to an otherwise male dominated set. \u00a0Parlato and Guiliana recently announced their engagement, so fans can hope for more collaboration to come.<\/p>\n