Birs Recordi

C.M. Talkington: Texas Radio [CD]

Birs Compilation [CD]

I approached Birs Recordings with another concept album, this time based on the book Winseburg, Ohio. I was first introduced to Sherwood Andersons writing in the early 80s and have been considering it since. Birs agreed to the project, and I was able to engage Jeremy Kortes again to create the art and design. Recording commenced at their NYC in the spring and everything was wrapped up in a few months. The resulting ten tracks are all drawn from Sherwoods fictional turn-of-the-century Ohio town.

"Take one part sonically conjured by EJS with the Ill Chemist himself: an Ageless Turning Carousel with a steady humming beat so sedan it glides for a quarter an hour. Add the Suite From Saturday Night Sonnets, with ThunderChucker hitting the pistons and maximum torque captured 'nearly live' by producer Babi Pal. Top dead center with tenor sax and diction by master poet EJS, and you have five fantastic classic rolls for your joint. Some bump, some glide, some long jump. "

“Piel lists ‘nature, turbulence, resilience, injustice, mantras, light and dark and beyond’ among its influences (alongside artists like Joy Division, Sade and Pink Floyd). Piel matches it with a danceable rock sound, grounded by singer Tiki Lewis' smooth delivery. An energetic, seamless performance into a space overflowing with greenery” —Marissa Lorusso NPR’s Tiny Desk Best of 2020 (“Custodian”) “While the bulk of A.K.A. Ma was completed pre-pandemic, divine sources are what guided us through the process, as well as through the dark aftermath of 2020. We’ve come out of this experience strong and better…” —Piel, 2021 A.K.A. Ma: Kid tested, Mother approved.

Brett Deubner's collection of contemporary classical solo viola pieces by Judith Markovich, Polina Nazaykinskaya, Andrew List, Maurizio Bignone and Tommie Haglund was captured at Birs Recordings new world-class studio in Orange NJ, mixed by 30-year recording veteran David Kerzner, and mastered by industry legend Scott Hull. High-quality digipak CDs and a special gatefold limited-edition audiophile 180g LP include details of the composers and their pieces, all of which were created for or dedicated to Mr. Deubner.