Browse by Artist: WHITE & THE BLACKS, JAMES

Artist:	WHITE & THE BLACKS, JAMES
Title:	Off White
Label:	4 MEN WITH BEARDS
Format:	LP
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	4M 504LP

"For Off White, James Chance, a veteran of New York's avant-garde 'no wave' scene, recast his seminal band the Contortions as a parody of a soul band, albeit one incorporating the rhythms of disco and funk rather than R&B. Thus, Chance became James White (as a nod to James Brown), the Contortions became the Blacks, and his music, previously a twisted, experimental brand of avant-jazz, became a disco/funk/free jazz hybrid. As bizarre as the fusion of Albert Ayler and Giorgio Moroder might sound, Off White works primarily because Chance commits to both sides of the music. By carefully constructing his music with such polar opposites, Chance manages to highlight how both of them have more similarities, especially in rhythm, than would appear at first listen. Original artwork, 180 gram vinyl."

Artist:	WHITE & THE BLACKS, JAMES
Title:	Off White
Label:	ZE RECORDS (FRANCE)
Format:	CD
Price:	$16.00
Catalog #:	ZE 007CD

Definite reissue of this No Wave classic, originally issued in 1979. Previous reissues of the Contortions and James White albums on Infinite Zero have been deleted for the better part of a decade. These are all officially sanctioned by the originating label, Ze Records; packaged in fold out digipaks, with deluxe 20 page booklets. "The 21st century has produced a new generation of young contenders of all kinds, who have, within months, spread a new string of names across the planet such as The Rapture, Playgroup, LCD Sound system, Liars, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Radio 4 and the likes, just to name a few. Once again the heat was initiated in NYC, even though its Lower East Side epicenter 'cleaned up' by Giuliani and Bloomberg, has moved a few blocks east and across the river to Brooklyn and Williamsburg. It might be wise to remind the younger ones among us that the origins of this new musical cycle is for the most part rooted in the No Wave movement of which James Siegfried aka James White, aka James Chance is undoubtedly one of its most prominent figures. New York City was hands down the artistic telluric center of the second half of the 20th century, especially from the 70's, on. Rising from the ashes of the Velvet Underground, a slew of local bands redefined the aesthetics of rock'n'roll which the merchants of the temple hastened to rename under various designations, such as punk, new wave, no wave, jazz-funk or even disco and disco-punk without forgetting to mention the original Electro designation pioneered by the band Suicide. One of the indispensable and emblematic figures of the mid-'70s is of course James Chance.



       Michael Zilkha and I would spend our days in the studio and our nights at the Paradise Garage, Studio 54, Max's Kansas City, CBGB's or at the Mudd Club. It did not seem incompatible to us to love underground disco played by Larry Levan along with James' Punk/funk/No Wave. After hearing the Contortions' album, Michael suggested to James to re-record new 'disco' titles. Anya seeing an opportunity to cash in on another advance suggested another concept: James White (alluding to James Brown) & The Blacks, a 'disco' version of The Contortions and obtained a new budget to record a second album, which was immediately recorded in the aftermath of Buy.



       Numerous guests join in the Blacks' sessions: Lydia Lunch under the pseudonym of Stella Rico, Anya Phillips under Ginger Lee's, Kristian Hoffman under Tad Among's and Master guitarist Bob Quine who played at the time in Richard Hell's Voidoids and who will later join Lou Reed." -- Michel Esteban/Ze Records.

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