“A perpetual infatuation with an innovation” – Vital Weekly

“One remains astonished by the impressive control which is proof each one of the groups are the worthy heirs to the American pioneers of the parallel music of the 60's-70's ” – Liability Webzine, France

What do all these performers have in common? Their love of music; their ability to push beyond the lines drawn by a complacent, unadventurous industry; their skill in turning all listeners into thoughtful ones, even the most passive or seemingly uninterested. Other than that, they are completely different from one another, and from most artists found in this time. They range from free improvisational jazz, to screaming electronic distortion, to spatial magically soothing pitches. They use voice, horns, samplers, construct their own instruments, deconstruct traditional musical stylings, and find the voices that lie within. The music can be dark, mysterious, ominous. It can be playful, refreshing, and invigorating. Nothing is ever sure, except that the listener won't be bored.

This is a three disc set featuring 30 astounding artists. The third disc is a multimedia disc with more audio and over 10 hours of MP3's so one may further explore the artists.

Birth

Dub Trio

Out of Context

mJane

Amitosis

DERAIL

HalfNormal

MEGMAN

Zimbabwe Nkenya

The Late Severa Wires

Harris Eisenstadt

J.A. Deane

Chris Jonas Trio

Ray Charles Ives

David Stout and Cory Metcalf

Raven Chacon

Adam Overton

Ether

Sama Trio

mi

Kipple

Free-bass

Alchemical Burn

Andrew Cryptic

Precision Poetry Drill Team

Morgan Smith

Rod Harrison

Gary Glazer

Grilly Biggs

Audible Whispering Half Quartet Last Chance for the Loneliest Kitten

Founded in 2001, High Mayhem Emerging Arts is a not-for-profit emerging arts facility, record label and multimedia production collective based in Santa Fe, New Mexico.  We challenge the homogenizing effect of pop-culture groupthink by providing opportunities for and fostering collaborations with underrepresented “experimental” artists. High Mayhem curates performances and organizes workshops year-round with musicians and performance artists who come from near and far. We seek out other brave explorers (and welcome those who have discovered us) to join us in producing innovative and thought-provoking experiences for our communities. Further, we encourage and organize collaborative experiments across disciplines; new forms emerge from mutated traditions and pure invention.

Limited hand-printed edition of 1000 CDs. Printed by Neil Burk of Monoroid Press.

What people have to say about the High Mayhem Festival.

“An Extraordinary festival” – Vital Weekly , Germany

“A very interesting mix of improvisation, rock, jazz, beats, influences of world music, etc. Most acts meet considerable musical standards and have an original approach.” – Staalplat , Germany

“I must admit that it opened a complete new world for me” – Dorf Mulder , Neatherlands

“Every band has a different approach to sound…(they) get people to rethink the conception of songs and of composition” – Santa Fe New Mexican

“The High Mayhem concept of art, music, and movement as a single experimental idea shared by many…. The production was, quite frankly, kick-butt fantastic” – Rob DeWalt

“It's hard to stop the momentum of these strange, twisted and amazing bands ” – SantaFe Reporter

“The festival featured bands whose overarching philosophy seems to be that the traditional musical structures are outdated and arbitrarily restrictive” – Jonanna Widner

The Festival CD “stands on its own as a work of art” – One Final Note

“A haven for up and coming experimental artists” – Ryan McDermont

“The audio disc itself is amazing” – One Final Note