Free Sounds: BeeP HonK (Ballou / Pirog / Hopkins / Kuhl) @ Birkfest 12.18.11

Just a quick post to share some live recordings that I’ve been a part of lately. BeeP HonK is a new band that I’m REALLY excited about. We were formed as a one-time-only ensemble as part of the Out of Your Head Collective, and the band played so well together that we decided to continue as a fully functional band. There are some very loose compositions written for the band that we sometimes play and sometimes ignore. In this particular Birkfest set (our third gig, including the OOYH set) we more chose to ignore the written material. The band is Dave Ballou-trumpet, Anthony Pirog-guitar, AH-bass, and Mike Kuhl-drums. Stay tuned for more from this band…more gigs and a record hopefully in the works soon. Enjoy:

BeeP HonK @ Birkfest 12.18.11

1) Fluffer Nutter (D. Ballou)

2) Scratch & Sniff (A. Hopkins)

3) BeepHonkChuckle (A. Hopkins)

4) Nice Spot (D. Ballou)

Free Sounds: Lubbock @ Windup Space 9.25.11 Full Set Recording

A new Baltimore-based 10-piece ensemble that I’m a part of called Lubbock had our second (ever) gig last night at the Windup Space. I’m so excited about the band and last night’s gig that I want to share the music with you. The entire bill was great, and much thanks to Friday Night Book Club and Sunshine Soldier for making it an awesome show.  As always thanks to Russell, Holly, and Bobby at Windup Space for making it our favorite place in the world to play.

The band is Cam Collins-alto sax; Eric Trudel-tenor sax; Colin Renick-bari sax; John Dierker-bass clarinet; Dave Ballou-trumpet; Brent Madsen-trumpet; Jim McFalls-trombone; Chris Pumphrey-rhodes; AH-bass; and Nathan Ellman-Bell-drums. These are some of my favorite improvisers to play with, and they all have some sort of roots in my hometown of Baltimore. This gig was so inspiring and I’m looking forward to doing more with the group in the future.  Feel free to download these tracks and share them with anyone who might be interested.  Enjoy!

Lubbock @ Windup Space 9.25.11:

1) The Rabo 10 (A. Hopkins)–featuring Chris Pumphrey-rhodes

2) Hapie (D. Ballou)–featuring Jim McFalls-trombone

3) [Title] (D. Ballou)–featuring Eric Trudel-tenor sax; Colin Renick-bari sax; John Dierker-bass clarinet

4) The High/Low 3.0 (A. Hopkins)–featuring Dave Ballou-trumpet

5) little e (A. Hopkins)–featuring Cam Collins-alto sax

6) Haymaker (E. Trudel)–featuring Brent Madsen-trumpet

7) Characters (C. Renick)–featuring Dave Ballou-trumpet; John Dierker-bass clarinet; Brent Madsen-trumpet; Eric Trudel-tenor sax; Jim McFalls-trombone; Cam Collins-alto sax; Colin Renick-bari sax

Out of Your Head Complete Fall Schedule

Guitarist Matt Frazao and myself have a lot of musical projects together. We play together in and both write music for Quartet Offensive which is still playing these days and recording a live album at An Die Musik on August 25. In March 2009 we created this thing called Out of Your Head.  Many of you know what it is, so I won’t go into any detail but there is a lot more information at outofyourhead.org. With the help of our great friend Russell de O’Campo (Windup Space owner) it has grown beyond out belief, involving over 50 creative musicians in Baltimore, and seeing steady crowds each week for our performances. Seeing these bands perform every Tuesday is my favorite part of the week and we couldn’t do it without the awesome musicians who are part of the collective.

We just finished the schedule for the rest of August, September, and October and it is a good one.  Lots of amazing bands in here.  The collective performs every Tuesday night at the Windup Space (12 W North Ave) in Baltimore from 9:30p to midnight.  And it is always free. Here’s the full schedule for Fall 2011 (OOYH Fall Schedule):

August 16–Ben Frock-trumpet; Susan Alcorn-pedal steel guitar; Jackie Pollauf-harp

August 23–Danny Gouker-trumpet; Janel Leppin-cello; Chris Pumphrey-rhodes; Will Redman-drums

August 30–Eric Trudel-reeds; Matt Rynes-reeds; Mike Cerri-trumpet; Savino Palumbo-piano; Patrick McAvinue-violin; Zack Branch-cello; Zach Swanson-bass

September 6–John Dierker-reeds; Matt Frazao-guitar; Jack Leckie-bass; Mike Ross-drums

September 13–Peter Formanek-sax; Anthony Pirog-guitar; Brian Brunsman-bass; Alan Munshower-drums

September 20–Colin Renick-reeds; Adam Hopkins-bass; Ethan Snyder-drums

September 27–Amanda Bloom-voice; Lauren Shusterich-voice; Erik Spangler-turntables, electronics

October 4–Dave Ballou-trumpet; Blake Cramer-vibraphone; Michael Ronstadt-cello; Mike Kuhl-drums

October 11–Anna Meadors-sax; Dan Wallace-sax; Dan Ryan-guitar; Jason Cohen-drums

October 18–Derrick Michaels-sax; Jon Lipscomb-guitar; Kevin Gift-keyboards; Mike Ross-drums

October 25–John Dierker-reeds; Andrew Delclos-bassoon; Liz Meredith-viola; Alex Weber-bass; Nathan Ellman-Bell-drums

Turn Around Norman Releases Debut Album

I’m very excited to be part of a new release from a band that I’ve been a member of for the past four years.  It’s been a long time in the making and Turn Around Norman has officially released our debut album “We Turn Around.” It features compositions by Cam Collins, JJ Wright, and myself. The band is Cam Collins-sax; JJ Wright-keyboards; AH-bass; and Nathan Ellman-Bell-drums. It is available for purchase from a number of sites digitally and hard copies are available directly from me via email. While we strongly prefer Bandcamp as the site to purchase the record digitally, we’d be excited for you to hear the music no matter where you get it! It’s also available on Amazon, Emusic, and iTunes. More info on the band is available at weturnaround.com…check back often, there are Fall tour dates in support of the album coming soon.

Welcome

Welcome to adamhopkinsbass.wordpress.com. The purpose of this site is to keep you updated of my happenings as a bassist, composer, and improviser while my permanent website (adamhopkinsbass.com) gets renovated. I’ll be updating frequently regarding upcoming performances in Baltimore and Brooklyn, as well as info relating to recordings, video, new projects, and any other information you may want to know or not know about me. Enjoy, and check back soon.

Adam.