Y RECORDS: Adventures In Rhythm

Y Records was one of the Rough Trade associated independent record companies, and one which paved the way for the evolution of  funk-dub-ska-jazz influences in post-punk/new wave era. The label was created in 1980 by music producer-manager Dick O'Dell and hosted several bands, specially ones derived from Bristol's indie scene: The Pop Group, Glaxo Babies, Pigbag, Mouth, Maximum Joy...
Y lasted up to mid-80s; then became part of bigger music companies.
Most well known artists: Pigbag and (early) Shriekback. A remarkable Y release: Sun Ra's legendary single "Nuclear War" (1982).

The Y Collection 
01 MOUTH take your coat off (1982)
02 MAXIMUM JOY building bridges (1982)
03 PULSALLAMA devil lives in my husband's boby (1982)
04 POP GROUP colour blind (1980)
05 SHRIEKBACK my spine (is the bassline) (1982)
06 CHRIS REEVES after the romance (1982)
07 PIGBAG six of one... (1982)
08 TESCO BOMBERS hernando's hideaway (1982)
09 MAXIMUM JOY man of tribes (1982)
10 THE VINCENT UNITS carnival song (1981)
11 SHRIEKBACK despite dense weed (1982)
12 PIGBAG dozo don (1982)
13 DISCONNECTION bali ha'i (1982)
14 SHRIEKBACK mothloop (1982)
15 GLAXO BABIES dahij (1980)
16 SUN RA nuclear war (1982)

compiled by LaFolieDuJour

Y Records  

Polish Avant Jazz, The Yass Scene

Milosc

Trytony

Jacek Olter

Mikolaj Trzaska

Yass forms one of the most interesting chapters in history of recent polish music. As a term, Yass, used  initially at the dawn of 90's by the avant-jazz outfit Milosc in order to describe the band's musical differentation to Polish Jazz status of that time. Not much after though, the term extended its meaning to manifest the innovative music direction  of many other similar bands, (activated mainly in the cities of Gdansk and Bydgoszsz)...until finally to become synonymous with a whole new avantjazz stream, a movement  that would play an influential role to the development of  contemporary jazz and the new improvised music in Poland.
Guided mostly by the free-jazz spirit the Yass musicians and their successors explore both the native origins of polish jazz and its modern position into the international field. They suggest crossings with radical rock (R.I.O., post-punk...), world music, improvisation, new technologies; even encounters with other art forms such as theatre or poetry...

A mini introduction to Yass artists and other polish jazzmen:

01 Mikolaj Trzaska serpent transparent
("Jacek Olter i 50 Artystow", 2006)
02 Tomas Gwincinski & NonLinear Ensemble fool moon august 2001
("The Moon Music", 2002)
03 Mikrokolektyw running without effort
("Revisit", 2010)
04 Meritum pieciolini
("Meritum", 2004)
05 Niebieski Lotnik spruty jak sweter
("Love Surprise", 2000)
06 NRD ojczyzna nasza dobroc, dobroc dobroc
("Sport I Religia", 1998)
07 Mazzoll ropa swietej anny
("Single 3", 2000)
08 Tymon Tymanski looking for Kusto
("Jacek Olter i 50 Artystow", 2006)
09 Cukunft utwor 5
("Itstikeyt/Fargangenheit", 2010)
10 Mazzoll & Knuth Diffusion Ensemble piesn powracajacych dzieci
("Azure Excess", 1999)
11 Leszek Mozdzer golenie glowy
("Pub 700, 2004)
12 Trytony nieudany black sabbath pod woda
("Tance Bydgoskie", 1992)
13 Gwincinski, Richter, Skolik ufologia trumn
("Jupiter, Urizen, Wernyhora, Trungpa", 1998)
14 Milosc luke the skywalker
("Milosc", 1993)

compiled by LaFolieDuJour

Yass / Polish Avant-Jazz