Born in Marseilles, France, grew up in Davis, California (with a
year's side trip to Tucson, AZ.), went to college at UCSC in Santa Cruz, CA,
studying with Gordon Mumma and Peter Elsea. In Santa Cruz he hooked up with Camper Van Beethoven, apparently
for life. He moved up to San Francisco in 1989, moved to Los Angeles in 1997
to work for Dane Davis at Danetracks, a film sound post production
facility, then back to Oakland in 2001, where received a Master's Degree in
Music Composition at Mills College, studying with Fred Frith, Pauline Oliveros, Alvin Curran, and Joelle Leandre.
While
in Santa Cruz, he played with Camper Van Beethoven, Eugene
Chadbourne and various other semi-musical projects, while in SF with
Sideways, Virginia Dare, Granfaloon Bus, Dieselhed and his own bands Hieronymus Firebrain which dissolved and reformed as Jack and Jill, which later led to various records of rock
music under his own name. While in Los Angeles, besides doing shows with Eugene
Chadbourne, he played with Clyde Wrenn
(as Clyde Wrenn and the Container), with Mike Marrt's Beaumont, occaisonal shows
with Mark Goodman's group, Magnet, and spent a great deal of
time touring the globe with Mark Linkous' group, Sparklehorse.
Upon return to the Bay Area, Jonathan has been playing rock shows with his own eponymous band,
as well as a reformed and revitalized Camper Van Beethoven. An all-new Camper Van Beethoven
cd, "New Roman Times", came out in the fall of 2004, followed by much touring in the United States and Europe, which continues to this day.
In addition to this, a self-ostracization
from Los Angeles and the film and music industries led Jonathan back to the
world of improvisation and electronic music, and he has been performing improvised
music for instruments and computer around the world for the past few years,
including shows in the SF Bay Area, New York, Europe and Japan.
2003 saw the CD release of several improv collaborations with notable artists such as Fred
Frith and Joelle Leandre, and with Shoko Hikage, and the first of many electronic music CDs.
In 2004, after various shows as both a rock and an improvising duo with Dina Emerson, Chaos Butterfly formed and started recording and touring as well.
So far several CDs of their strange brand of electronic/improv music have been produced worldwide, as well as performances in the US and Europe with many collaborators.
In 2005, the duo of Chaos Butterfly began composing and performing with the Deborah Slater Dance Theater, including the month-long run of the show "Hotel of Memories" in San Francisco in May of 2006, and Jonathan continues to work with the company providing music.
On July 7 2007 the Theatre of Yugenpresented an entire cycle of Noh plays, Jonathan played with Suki O'Kane and Allen Whitman on the music for several of the plays, and composed the music for the center play, "Dark/Silent"
Late 2007, after much Camper Van Beethoven touring with Built to Spill, Jonathan released his latest rock cd, "Honey", and is occasionally playing shows with that band.
A reprinted history and interview can be found on this blogspot by Art Into Dust
you are free to upload or download LIVE recordings of this artist at www.ARCHIVE.org's live music archive!!!
here's a new show from Sept 14 2007, opening for Built to Spill at the Henry Fonda Theatre in LA
common name misspellings include: Jonathan Segal, Jonathan Siegel, Johnathan Segel, Jonathon etc. i mean Willem Shaxepeere's name wasn't solidified til years later either....
Stayed in town an extra night to catch your show at Bottom of the Hill. Very glad I did. Your music is divine. I bought "Honey" after the show and listened to it in the car all the way home to Nevada.
--Kelly
PS: If you're keeping count, I wound up with #62 of 400. (The artwork for this CD is gorgeous. )
Hey Jonathan, you're right! Your eyebrows make you look like a serial killer! Great show tonight at the Fillmore. Come back to Tahoe soon so I don't have to drive so damn far to see you again.
Hi, just popped in to say I'll be seeing you all in September. Did you finally get hold of Luis and the Artichoke project and coerce them to appear at Pi-Town. I would love to see them. Cheers Di
Hi, thanks for the ad, neighbor! And please feel free to take advantage of our special $5. 00 off your first purchase of a DuClos' Original Biblicals quote today!
Hi, thanks for the add! EXODUS! A Top Five Add on CALI RADIO!
I just saw this a little late, but KDVS 90.3 FM, Davis, CALIFORNIA chose CDD's latest album FLY EXODUS, FLY! as a top five add for May:
05.05.08
1.Boris - "Smile" (Southern Lord) 2.Lucky Dragons - "Dream Island Laughing Language? (Marriage Records) 3.Paper Legs - "Mild & Fierce EP" (Heat Retention) 4.Bum Kon - "Drunken Sex Sucks" (Smooch) 5. Communal Death Duck - "Fly Exodus, Fly" (Self-Released)
Isn't that awesome! AND SELF-RELEASED TOO! If you are in CALI and you're reading this... WHY NOT REQUEST US, PRETTY PLEASE!!!! If you do... I'll send you free things... !!! (we're also on KXLU 88.9 FM - Los Angeles, CA)
The 'Art into Dust' interview kills me, all your blogs do and it's strange because I remember seeing you during these various stages of yer career. The music bis sucks ! Is all I really hear from about everyone involved in it. It kills me that such talented people get little or no recognition over and over again. God these sound like our shows, shifting time slots and unknown pay, it's very frustrating.
4th Annual Cracker/Camper Van Beethoven Campout Special guests Built to Spill, Quasi and Citay!! Sept 11th-13th at Pappy and Harriet's in Pioneertown,California Free Camping! tix on sale at www. crackersoul. com
