Listed: Aaron Dooley
Aaron Dooley is a bass player and composer, originally from Illinois but now living in Denver, Colorado. He has played in many different bands in a diverse array of genres, including the garage-psych Gay Neighbors, shoegaze-y Totem Pocket and neo-soul Dog Tags, but more recently has dipped into improvisation and jazz. Jennifer Kelly reviewed his most recent album, The International Disassociation of, noting that “This second outing of 2023 from Aaron Dooley’s seven-piece jazz ensemble shimmers and shifts, an indefinite haze of sound breaking, sporadically, for clear flights of melody. Dooley, a bass player out of Denver, plunks a subtle, unsettling undertow, allowing other instruments — pedal steel, saxophone, even drums — to slip to the forefront. All improvised, these cuts absorb multiple points of view into free-flowing inquiry, not muddying them, but softening the edges.” Here are ten of Dooley’s favorites.
Yusef Lateef — Cry! Tender
Around age 16, this was probably the first record I ever bought (thanks North Street Records), let alone the first jazz that ever gripped me. Something about the smooth-looking bald guy with a flute on the cover grabbed me, but the sounds coming from the platter kept me coming back again and again. Songs like “Dopolous” sway along with such eerie elegance that even the swing rhythms feel like a somber march. A fun tidbit, Ernie Farrow, Alice Coltrane’s half-brother, is playing bass on the album.
Shlohmo — Shlo-Fi E.P.
I remember my friend Jacob Dilley hipping me to Shlohmo one Sunday morning. It was better than church. I hadn’t ever heard anything quite like it before. Beats, samples, found sounds arranged in a way that was almost spiritual. A lifelong Shlohmo fan, I’m happy to see his sound and career evolve, but those first Shlohmo releases between 2009 and 2011 sounded like treasure unearthed from the concrete. Probably the first artist to open the door to my love for non-lyrical music.
John Frusciante — Shadows Collide With People
That’s right hipsters, it’s the guy from Red Hot Chili Peppers. And Flea and Chad Smith are the backing band. But Anthony Keidis is nowhere to be found, so some might argue it’s the best RHCP album there is. I could give a whole dissertation on this album, but basically, it was a great healing force when it came into my life, and made me aware and appreciative of sounds that would lead me to where I am today.
Herbcraft — The Astral Body Electric
I believe it was September 1st, 2015, that Matt LaJoie played at Reverberation Vinyl. Herbcraft’s performance was inspiring and transcendent to say the least. I’ve loved everything Matt has put out, but those early Herbcraft records hold a special place in my heart. Before that point, I don't think I had any actual awareness of the country’s underground psych scene, but everything came full circle when I had the honor to play with Matt at Reverberation Vinyl this last May.
Jaco Pastorius — Solo
Every electric bass player owes something to Jaco. The heaviest bass nerds could go on for days about all the doors he opened (or kicked free from the hinges), but for me this particular solo encapsulates everything I like about Jaco as a player: running the bass through chorus and delay/reverb to create otherworldly tones with harmonics, riding the line between melody and the abstract, and grooving into a rock song like “Third Stone From the Sun.” When I saw this in like 2008, I realized jazz and rock were perhaps more similar than I had once thought. Also, my love for harmonics was sealed forever.
Shigeto — No Better Time Than Now
This is a strong contender for my desert island album. I don’t think Shigeto (Zachary Saginaw) has gotten the love he deserves for his approaches to music making like many of his contemporaries. The way the live instruments, his drumming in particular, blend with the electronic automations to create a sound that threads beautifully between genres. Electric perfection.
Primal Scream — Swastika Eyes (Jagz Kooner Mix)
For the last few years, I’d probably say Primal Scream has been my favorite band. Far beyond Screamadelica, the whole Primal Scream discography hits a lot of zones I’ve considered my favorites throughout the years. Bobby Gillespe has always seemed to be politically well-minded, and the way his laid-back delivery blends with noise rock onslaughts and sweaty club pulsations really does it for me. Whether folks want to admit it or not, I hear a lot of their influence in what’s happened musically over the last 15 years.
Ron Miles — Circuit Rider (2015-06-29) Monument National
I had the honor of studying with Ron Miles for a year or so during my time at MSU Denver. Brief as it was, I am forever grateful for it. I owe it to Ron for giving me the confidence to record the Trapped in Purgatory album and I am disappointed that he passed before its release. He seemed to respect my knack for music history and the last time I saw him, he asked me where he should start with krautrock. I hope he went home and checked out some CAN that night.
Gimo
A well of infinite talent and spirit and forever on the right-side of history, I can’t really find the words to properly express the influence Gimo has had on my life. They’ve given me more love than I deserve, and I don’t know how to adequately state the influence they’ve had on me. The most incredible artist, they did the cover of my Dooley Noted album, and are currently tattooing at Wild Wind Tattoo in Chicago. Find them on IG @i_am_gimo and book a tattoo appointment with them if you're in Chicago; you won’t regret it!
John Anderson, Reverberation Vinyl
The mentor. The influencer. The psychedelic stepdad. It’s hard to state the love and respect I’ve got for John. I wouldn’t be doing what I am musically without his guidance. He’s turned me on to quite a bit of good tunes and has gotten me to go across the country more than once for a music pilgrimage. Not including the numerous heads John’s brough to his store, Reverberation Vinyl, I owe much of my connection to the country’s music underground to his networking. Hope I can continue to make you proud, buddy.
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my favorite aa fanarts that i made!! some of them are a little old, but i still like the drawings so i'll compile them all here ~ and i promise i'll stop reposting old drawings after that!!!!
dahlia holding dahlias!! i wanted to try a new painting method (this drawing was revolutionary for my art because i still use this painting method nowadays)
(s)miles edgeworth... he should smile more thats why i drew these... also because of the aa bloppers
desiron wedding.... i love them SO MUCH they are my fav canon aa ship
susahao!!! MY GIRLS!!
ema skye investigations!! i had so much fun drawing the luminol effect (thats why i started the drawing in first place skowmsowm)
my magnum opus fr! this got a lot of attention on twitter. im very proud of this one!!!
finally... narumitsu being lovely 😭
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hi phoenix girlies i made more sprite comparisons because they are so fascinating to me. the way he takes so many mannerisms from people who are important to him or had an impact on him or are parallels to him. and then passes them on to people he has an impact on. i love the visual storytelling in these games so much.
feel free to add more if you have any!! i know there are plenty I didn’t have space for lol
EDIT 7/19: ive seen a lot of people commenting about ron’s presence standing out among everyone else and i have written an explanation about this a while back, im going to reblog that addition again and pin it on my profile for a while
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These are for REAL doodles I'm sharing with you guys this time TT I was convinced into buying procreate and I'm having a lot of fun!!
Someone left me a very funny reblog that says ema would strangle Klavier like Homer Simpson (Thank you faerieyuri teehee)
The DeLites my beloved <3
An actually crappy minicomic based on a text post I unfortunately can't find anymore TT
Egged on by my sisters and @exaltedfuzz into drawing Klavier as one direction imagines
The funniest unfinished piece ever, why does Ryuu look like that.. he really went 👀
More of Mikeko cause it's funny and I wanna get better at drawing cats TT my sister and I have a bunch of aa characters on the sims and I wanted to draw Klav because he's the most beautiful sim we got and is always dripped out 💔 (also the apollo here was a warm up I cleaned up for the post at the very top!)
Damon Gyatt 💔
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