Eaton Flowers
SDM Records presents Stochastic Mettle Union "Search for Light" available now on vinyl, tape & digital formats!!
sMu -" Move in, Burna Place Down, Move Out " the Search for Light B sides coming soon on limited edition cassette!!
musician producer composer engineer
Stochastic Mettle Union is a project started in 2012 by guitarist and electronic musician William Hardy a.k.a. Eaton Flowers and drummer David Haverkampf. The idea was to assemble an ever-evolving group of musicians who could improvise each and every performance whether live or in the studio. The difference between the Stochastic approach and improvisational music of the past, or noise artists of today, is the attention paid to improvising complete song structures that sound modern and composed, even topical at times, as well as forays into the deepest realms of sonic exploration and free expression. This duality of purposes, the overt moodiness, and visual quality of the music sets sMu and Eaton Flowers apart. Both are a perfect match for visual media and ready to deliver explosive live performances.
If you absolutely needed to shove the members of Stochastic Mettle Union into a genre box, the closest you could find is the one marked "jazz." But even though the group plays tunes like "Ornette's Cage"—a reference to avant-bop icon Ornette Coleman—and exhibit a penchant for double bass and wind instruments, the tag still seems limiting. This ever-evolving project encompasses some free jazz ideals (amorphous rhythms, dissonance) and rends them asunder by way of laptop manipulations and scratchy post-punk guitars. And since they improvise every performance, they could zig into pure noise or play with delicate restraint. That's a recipe for avant-greatness in my book. Robert Ham Portland Mercury
“They transformed the video lottery parlor into a spectral, Black Lodge like atmosphere with their mysterious, trance-inducing doom jazz. Josh Feinberg was holding down the pocket on a lovely, mahogany stand-up bass, while David Haverkampf drummed like Vishnu, keeping the music swooning, ducking and diving. William Hardy alternated between John McLaughlin-like atmospheric electric guitar and triggering samples and electronics, and it seemed like the ghost of Miles was summoned in this dive bar seance parlor. A baritone sax completed the ensemble, one of my all-time favorite instruments; warm and rich and full. The music swirled like a fiery hurricane, but this chaos was entirely contained, as 30-something bohemians twirled like dervishes in the cramped confines. The crowd, made up of all stripes of humanity, were warm, friendly, and inviting. I was absolutely floored that music of this caliber is being made in the city where I live.” sMu performance review from St.Johns No Fest Jason Simpson -The Drainage.net
“Stochastic Mettle Union local #35 has built a groundswell of approval and support throughout Portland, Ore., and the Willamette Valley. With descriptions of a guitar style alluding to the late great Sonny Sharrock, William Hardy mans a variety of electronics when joining bassist Josh Feinberg and drummer David Haverkampf, From this writer’s standpoint, SMU’s art has moved on from an earlier spot that could find their "aural sculptures” dense pieces. Their recent work shows a more confident embrace of dynamic nuance and the benefits of space. Kevin Lee - lagniappe
The meme-ification of all things Twin Peaks is fun and all, but it threatens to rob David Lynch's creation of its unsettling mystery. So let's hope tonight's showcase of Lynchian music—headed by local experimentalists WL and Stochastic Mettle Union, and timed to the premiere of the return season this Sunday—pursues the vital creepiness at the show's heart. Let's get spooked. For real this time. Again. by Pete Cottell....Willamette Week
As a combo, the four players build and recede together in slowly developing waves that remind me of some of the best BYG Actuel material from the late ’60s. A truly triumphal moment for this band and one that will hopefully push them forward as they ready their first vinyl release. abridged review of sMu Thought Adjuster by Robert Ham - Experimental Portland
"While some of the music sounds Eno-Ambient in nature,other songs such as "Chrystallization "--incorporate a strong jazz influence. Some of the other songs have passages that remind me of Burzums electronic period.Very cool sounds indeed!! Im really looking forward to the cd release"............................ The Rev.Keith A.Gordon Allmusic
"In the continuing effort by the three-piece Stochastic Mettle Union to document most everything they do together (musically-speaking), this past weekend the group unfurled a pair of live recordings via their SoundCloud page. Both were recorded on September 13th, are just over 10 minutes in length, and find the trio working Pollock-like splashes of sonic color connected only by their own guile. I prefer the track above for its unhinged qualities but find some solace in knowing that the group can play things a little more straightforward so as not to offend the delicate sensibilities of some folks that might run into their work without proper notification." ..........................review by Robert Ham ...Willamette Week
Eaton Flowers
Eaton Flowers is the moniker for musician, producer, composer William Hardy. His composed output is recorded as well as performed under the Eaton Flowers name.
For anybody that digs adventurous guitar music, abstract instrumental hip-hop, and otherworldly sound sculptures, frequently at the same time, you need to check this one out! Jason Simpson - abridged review of Eaton Flowers American Abstraction@Forestpunk
Free, psychedelic free jazz/rock. Very cool guitar,especially. Review of Eaton Flowers Imaginary Latin by;Danny Muth@Sputnik Music
Laser whooshes, frantic drum beats and those horns 'a-blarin' bring us through this... It's not quite head-bobbing, and it's not quite toe-tapping, but when I listen to it I typically have to stand up to move and my head tends to wobble back and forth (left to right, not up and down) and the rest of my body seems to be dancing along with the rhythm. It's wild and unlike anything I've ever experienced before. abridged review of Eaton Flowers Epeke by Josh Mccalla @ Raised by Gypsies
credits
restoration engineer for Grammy Award winning producer Tom Bradshaw on historic recordings by;
Bill Evans Trio
Sarah Vaughan Quartet
Sarah Vaughan Quartet + Dizzy Gillespie
Stephane Grappelli
Theryl " Houseman " Declouet
D.J.Logic
Mr..Mixx
Poet Robert Lashley
Afroman
Stochastic Mettle Union
Fed. Johnson
Reward
Sweetbread
Rope-a-Dope Records
Michael Ward
T-Bones Records
New Orleans Slim
Alien Parkinsons Project
Eaton Flowers Quartet
Apollo Creep
SDM Records
Savalas Bros
Loppy Conspiracy
musician producer composer engineer
