The Squid's Ear Magazine


Uehla, Julia and Dalava: Understories (Pi Recordings)

"Dalava, the genre-defying ensemble led by vocalist Julia Ulehla with guitarist Aram Bajakian (Lou Reed, John Zorn), returns with Understories, a deeply evocative new album that explores uncharted territories of sound, seamlessly weavin...
 

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product information:

Personnel:



Julia Ulehla-voice, effects, lotar

Aram Bajakian-guitars, bass, piano, synths, percussion

Peggy Lee-cello

Josh Zubot-violin


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UPC: 808713010725

Label: Pi Recordings
Catalog ID: Pi 107CD
Squidco Product Code: 36051

Format: CD
Condition: New
Released: 2025
Country: USA
Packaging: Digipack
Recorded at Afterlife Studios, in Vancouver, Canada, on June 8th and 9th, 2021, by John Raham.

Descriptions, Reviews, &c.

"Dalava, the genre-defying ensemble led by vocalist Julia Ulehla with guitarist Aram Bajakian (Lou Reed, John Zorn), returns with Understories, a deeply evocative new album that explores uncharted territories of sound, seamlessly weaving Moravian folk traditions with an experimental, improvisational approach into a captivating new soundscape. Their music has received critical acclaim for its expressive depth: fRoots extolled their prior release as "so overwhelming and so intense that it is hard to put into any category.... Saying that The Book of Transfigurations is a masterpiece is not an exaggeration."

Much of the music is based on a published collection of engagingly melodic songs that Ulehla's great-grandfather collected from his native village a century ago. Sung in Czech and English, Ulehla's hypnotic voice spans from whisper to holler, by turns vulnerable and stentorian, embodying each song in its own fantastical world. The music resides in that indeterminate, liminal space between past and future, magic and realism, neither primordial nor of this world. The album is a sonic exploration that transcends time and borders, fusing disparate traditions into a singular, emotionally charged experience."-Pi Recordings


Artist Biographies

"The music of guitarist, composer and educator Aram Bajakian has been called "a masterpiece" (fRoots, July 2017), "shape-shifting" (FreeJazzCollective, January 2017), and "astonishing" (Georgia Straight, March 2017).

As an instrumentalist, Bajakian had the privilege of performing alongside Velvet Underground frontman Lou Reed during his last two tours in 2011 and 2012. In 2013, Bajakian toured in Diana Krall's band, performing over 100 concerts with the multiple-Grammy-award-winning singer, along with violinist Stuart Duncan (Yo-Yo Ma's Goat Rodeo, Robert Plant) and drummers Karriem Riggins (Kanye West, Common, J-Dilla) and Jay Bellerose (Elton John, Rhiannon Giddens). Through these tours and others, Bajakian has had the opportunity to play in many of the world's greatest venues, including Carnegie Hall, Royal Albert Hall, the Acropolis, L'Olympia, as well as the Montreaux, Newport, Northsea, Monterey and Antibes jazz festivals, among others.

Bajakian's collaboration with his wife, vocalist, actress and ethnomusicologist, Julia Ulehla, entitled Dálava, reimagines folk songs collected over 100 years ago from a single village in Moravia by her great-grandfather. Their performances and two albums have received universal critical acclaim. Dálava's latest album, The Book of Transfigurations (Songlines, 2017) was listed by the Georgia Straight as one of "50 Albums That Shaped Vancouver" in their May 2017 edition celebrating the magazine's 50th year in print. Bastiaan Springer, in his August 2017 fRoots review said, "Every now and then an album appears that is so overwhelming and so intense that it is hard to put into any category. Such is the case with The Book Of Transfigurations, the second release by Dálava...Saying that The Book Of Transfigurations is a masterpiece is not an exaggeration."

Bajakian's 2014 solo guitar album, Music Inspired by the Color of Pomegranates, an alternate soundtrack to Parajanov's iconic film, received 4.5 stars from All About Jazz and was featured in the documentary Shepherds in the Cave, which tells the story of the restoration of frescoes in ancient Italian caves. there were flowers also in hell (2014, Sanasar Records), was called "One of the best instrumental rock records of recent years," by New York Music Daily. Village Voice critic Robert Christgau said of the album, "Every track singular, every track strong. A MINUS." Released by John Zorn's Tzadik Label, Aram Bajakian's Kef, which explores Armenian dance music of the same name, was listed as one of the Best World Music Albums of 2011 by PopMatters.

Bajakian has worked with numerous artists over the years and has been featured on several of composer and saxophonist John Zorn's projects. Bajakian performs in bassist Shanir Blumenkranz' (Yo-Yo Ma, Cyro Baptista) band Abraxas, which has recorded two albums of John Zorn's music: Book of Angels Volume 19, and Psychomagia. Bill Milkowski called their first album a "Twin 6 String assault," in Downbeat Magazine. A third album of material, entitled Book Beriah: Gevurah, was released in 2018 as part of an 11 CD box set which also featured albums by Bill Frisell, Craig Taborn, Julian Lage and Secret Chiefs 3.

Since 2014, Bajakian has performed in Frank London's (The Klemzatics) Glass House Orchestra, which recreates the musical culture of Hungarian Jewish communities destroyed by the Holocaust. Their debut record was nominated for three German Critics' Best of the Year Awards in October 2017.

Bajakian received his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst where he studied with Dr. Yusef Lateef. He holds a Masters Degree in Music Education from Teachers College, Columbia University and Master of Music degree in Music Composition from the University of British Columbia, where he studied electronic music with Dr. Keith Hamel. When not touring, he works as the Music Curator for the Western Front in Vancouver, one of Canada's leading artist run spaces for art and new music."

-Aram Bajakian Website (http://arambajakian.com/about)
4/23/2025

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.

"Cellist, improviser, composer Peggy Lee was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario. She studied classical cello, completing a bachelors degree in performance at the University of Toronto as a student of Vladimir Orloff and Denis Brott. She furthered her studies on the cello with lessons with Martha Gerschefski in Atlanta Georgia. In the fall of 1988 Peggy began a year residency with a string quartet at the Banff Centre in Banff, Alberta. It was here that she first became interested in collaborating with artists from different mediums and in veering away from the classical path. This led to a decision to move away from the known and thus to her relocating to Vancouver, B.C. where she now makes her home.

Peggy's first forays into improvisation in Vancouver happened with dancers at the EDAM (experimental dance and music) studio at the Western Front and eventually led to her meeting and joining guitarists Ron Samworth and Tony Wilson in their respective bands; as well as becoming a member of the New Orchestra Workshop, which went on to have interesting and fruitful collaborations with Butch Morris, Wadada Leo Smith, René Lussier, Barry Guy and George Lewis.

Peggy continues to collaborate frequently with Ron and Tony and with her husband, drummer Dylan van der Schyff, as well as with many other longtime musical associates including Dave Douglas, Wayne Horvitz, Robin Holcomb, Veda Hille and Lisa Miller. She also leads or co-leads a number of musical projects: The Peggy Lee Band, Film in Music, Waxwing (with Tony Wilson and Jon Bentley) and Beautiful Tool (with Mary Margaret O'Hara).

She has also collaborated extensively in theatre and dance with companies and artists such as Ruby Slippers, Rumble Theatre, Presentation House, David Hudgins, Peter Bingham and Delia Brett.

In 2005, Peggy received the Freddie Stone Award for integrity and innovation in music and in 2010 she was awarded a Jesse Richardson Theatre Award for outstanding composition."

-Peggy Lee Website (http://www.peggylee.net/about-peggy.html)
4/23/2025

Have a better biography or biography source? Please Contact Us so that we can update this biography.


Track Listing:



1. Open Your Ear To The Great Below 3:02

2. Escape Velocity 3:07

3. Entanglement 5:30

4. Queen Of Heaven And Earth 6:07

5. Bowed Low 5:18

6. The Way Down 6:32

7. Phase Transition 8:08

8. Water Of Life 1:11

9. Sacrifice 2:30

10. The Way Up 10:30

11. Side Real Time 4:11

Related Categories of Interest:

In Stock, Not Yet Cataloged

Improvised Music
Jazz
Free Improvisation
Vancouver and Western Canada
Canadian Composition & Improvisation
Unusual Vocal Forms
Quartet Recordings

Search for other titles on the label:
Pi Recordings.


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