band:
matt guggemos
matt lebofsky
rob pumpelly
wally scharold
jamison smeltz
carolyn walter
video, etc:
jarred mcadams
past/honorary members:
nathaniel hawkes
dickie ogden
aram shelton
dave reminick
keith kelly
ben doitel
phil halseth
hudson berry
mark bartscher
brian chase
matt mueller
bill wolter
rob reich
jon brooks
patrick kelly
mark speer
jordon blackwell
martin simmons
and many others
Influences
Albert Marcoeur
Albert Ayler
Anton Webern
Fred Frith
Meshuggah
Milford Graves
Henri Dutilleux
Anthony Braxton
Slayer
Henry Threadgill
Muhal Richard Abrams
Igor Stravisnky
Samuel Barber
Iannis Xenakis
Tatsuya Yoshida
Frank Zappa
Again a band that comes out of nowhere. These kinds of surprises are reason enough to keep looking for new discoveries. They are out there - I want to believe.
miRthkon, under the lead of guitarist Wally Scharold, bombards the interested listener with a happy mix of well done, off-beat, aggressive and dry guitar riffs with complex, unusual compositions which are decorated with seemingly labyrinthine woodwind lines (mostly saxophones, but also clarinets) - it's a true joy. Sometimes it sounds like a less hectic and less traversed version of Dr. Nerve, sometimes one can hear through the twisted melody lines the good old, late Frank Zappa (although updated with very heavy guitars), especially in the melodic, polyphonic, and playful 'Daddylonglegz'. German listeners will be reminded of the more off-beat moments of Panzerballet, where the funkiness and more offensive jazziness are replaced with reminiscences of the RIO school (a bit of jazz rock is present here and there with miRthkon, although with more edge and sneer).
It sounds weird, and it is. But still it is not repelling or cold, but to the contrary through a casually ironic style and the fresh combination of diverse musical elements are quite attractive and despite all the musical roughness it is not harsh. Fine, very fine.
The biggest flaw of 'The Illusion of Joy" is the fact that this EP plays pretty short (it is, by the way, offered in a very nice DigiPak, and the price is lowered too). Should this EP sell well miRthkon has announced that they will again publish earlier out-of-print recordings (those are, however, more solo projects of Scharold and less a product of the band). I really hope this is going to happen. Even more I wish they would work on a real LP of the present band because their music is most exciting. More of this!!!
Use the Flash Player below to listen to our most recent show!
LIVE at Hotel Utah 02.08.2007
___________________________________________
CD RELEASE!
The Official miRthkon kwik-e-mart is OPEN FOR BUSINESS!
CLICK ON THE BANNER BELOW TO BUY OUR DEBUT CD!
Start your miRthkon TODAY!
___________________________________________
Our EP is also available from the following fine outlets:
___________________________________________
GREETINGS
you who find yourself fortunate enough to have found our nation's foremost purveyors of joyful illusion, provided for the first time in all of its most pleasing forms.
LEARN who miRthkon are and what they do.
JUDGE the gamut of miRthkon's aesthetics for yourself and share your conclusions with others.
PROFIT from the exploitation of miRthkon's heretofore unexploited talents.
Each and every piece of information contained in this document is guaranteed to ENRICH & MULTIPLY the consumer's devotion to the gradual attainment of GREATNESS.
In such harrowing times as these, we must take pause to reflect on the smaller things: the countless trifles which fill our pockets and our days, which we have woven into an elaborate veil through which we seek our joy.
As these trifles become ever more numerous and specialized, their abundance increases at a rate inversely proportional to their material significance. Consequently, the consumer is faced with an insurmountably daunting array of enticing distractions.
There is nothing we value more than your hard earned dollars. Therefore we have spared no expense in mining the finest gems of heretofore undiscovered aesthetic phenomena, shaping them into riveting sensory encounters with which to further facilitate the obfuscation of your reality. These edifices of stultifying amusement have been forged with the utmost care and are guaranteed to provide hours of mirthful diversion.
Start your miRthkon TODAY!
Upon activation, the consumer will find him or herself confronted by sounds so bold as to ask the most far-reaching of musical questions:
What do sax soli lines sound like over raging odd-meter metal grooves?
What is it that makes a bass clarinet sound so evil?
Can complexity be catchy?
Why are round things so boring?
Will tweaked-out atonal jazz thrash be THE NEXT BIG THING?
Hey! What's happenin'? I want to personally invite you to listen to my new albums. If you like what you hear please consider purchasing a single, an album, or both. I'll see you on the dancefloor!
Hey hows it goin? Were just droppin by to make sure there is much brutality going on... If you haven't visited us in a while, listen to our tunes to refresh your memory and let us know what you think
FREE STUFF! FREE STUFF!!!!!! FREE STUFF!!!!!!!!!!! JOIN OUR MAILING LIST AND GET FREE SCHWAG AS WELL AS BEING KEPT UP TO DATE ON SHOWS IN YOUR AREA!
Woaw, happy 2 be your french friend ! GREAT SOUNDS HERE like in the old time but in a fuzzy way! We already support you but.. damned: your last cd doesn't appear on iTunes 'france' sob sob :((
