Raw Demoon Alchemy (A Lone Operation)

by Darius Jones

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howrad13 Figure No.2. it was the first live song I heard since everything fell. it gives me renewed connection to this violent life it is the heartbeat that reminds me to breathe when i wait too long. intimate love anguish.

John Seltenreich Find a time late at night, cue this up and tell me you can't flip this over. Compelling, solo, hypnotic sax. Sun Ra would be proud.

jiristepan Emotional wound. Pieces by great figures of history, but very spontaneous, personal and distinctive in Jones' performance, as he manages to find the emotion of the solo saxophone somewhere in the unknown while playing. Plus, the raw sound... beautiful.

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Artwork and Design by Risha Rox.

Standard Black 12" Vinyl LP //
Metallic Silver Foil-Stamped Elements Feature on the Front & Back of the LP Jacket.

Includes unlimited streaming of Raw Demoon Alchemy (A Lone Operation) via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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1.	Figure No. 2 09:46	buy track
2.	Sadness 09:22	buy track
3.	Beautiful Love 06:03	buy track
4.	Nonaah 09:41	buy track
5.	Love in Outer Space 13:41	buy track

about

Raw Demoon Alchemy (A Lone Operation) harnesses the gamut of raw, unadulterated emotions — suppressed feelings that we’ve all been allowed to “feel” again in the wake of a global pandemic. Born out of a live performance in fall 2019, during the last stop of his tour in Portland, OR, saxophonist Darius Jones renders a solo effort that evokes sadness, rage, and confusion, all the while still holding for glimmers of hope for the future.

With four of its five tracks on Alchemy, Jones selects compositions from artists who are not just unapologetically Black but also notably ones that he regards as “world builders.” From Sun Ra, Ornette Coleman, and Roscoe Mitchell right up through the present with Georgia Anne Muldrow, Alchemy draws immeasurable strength from each of these artists who dared to envision and create an entire universe unto themselves, on their terms.

“I want to capture a moment in time, to crystallize the beginning of something at the end of something else,” says Jones. Separated and now divorced from his partner of 10 years, Alchemy balances the emotional heft of closure with the simple act of standing alone. Each track unearths a deep and profound vulnerability in every solo performance that isn’t just personal but also delves into the macro-level divisiveness of our current political climate.

With “Figure No. 2,” Jones offers us a modern-day version of the blues. Courtesy of Muldrow, her refrain encapsulates the vast breadth of the Black experience in America, transforming our deep-seated pain into our beauty and armor of resilience. Jones also proudly rests on the shoulders of Coleman and Mitchell, two of this music’s known improvisers who often stood alone in this music’s ever-changing landscape. He pays homage to Mitchell with “Nonaah,” which in the late 1970s was initially met with jeers from an audience, that is, until his 21+ minute long version overtook them.

Alchemy uncovers a duality of what it means to be alone, especially resonant in today’s climate of social distancing. In one turn, we were all forced to put life as we knew it on hold — to simply be still and deal with our emotional realities unencumbered by the distractions of life. But at another turn, Jones taps into an unknown power of his lone voice, finding a newfound strength and enthusiasm that will carry him — and its listeners — beyond the uncertainty and doubt of not knowing.

credits

released November 5, 2021

Produced by Darius Jones

Recorded by Darius Jones at Holocene, Portland, OR on Oct. 18th, 2019

Mixed and Mastered by David Torn at Cell Labs East

This album is dedicated to Art Neely, Cindy Neeley, Tamara Neeley and Kim Daley. You will always be my family. Love you all.

Special Thanks to Roscoe Mitchell, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Ted Klum, Bill Singer, Rainbow Robert, John Gilbreath, Harry Bernstein, Michael Woodworth, Creative Music Guild, Paul De Lucena, Alain Kirili, Francisco De La Garza, Katrina Kaplan, and GOD.

Track 1 composed by Georgia Anne Muldrow, Epistrophik Peach Publishing, BMI; Track 2 composed by Ornette Coleman, Phrase Text Music, ASCAP; Track 3 composed by Victor Young, Wayne King, Egbert Van Alstyne, Haven Gillespie Music Publishing CO, Warner Bros INC (Warner Bros Music DIV), ASCAP; Track 4 composed by Roscoe Mitchell, Art Ensemble of Chicago Publishing CO. ASCAP; (excerpt from a version in 1976 at festival in Willisau, Switzerland); Track 5 composed by Sun Ra, Enterplanetary Koncepts, BMI

© 2021 Aston Boy Music (ASCAP)

Made possible with the support of Robert D. Bielecki Foundation.

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about

Darius Jones New York, New York

Darius Jones has created a recognizable voice as a critically acclaimed saxophonist and composer by embracing individuality and innovation in the tradition of African-American music. Jones’ music is a confrontation against apathy and ego, hoping to inspire authenticity that compels us to be better humans.

Photograph by
Ebru Yildiz ... more

shows

Jul 4

Monheim Triennale – The Prequel

Monheim, Germany
Jul 12

Bar Bayeux

Brooklyn, NY

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