Dave Kerman
Encyclopedia
David Kerman better known as Dave Kerman, is a United States
experimental rock
drummer and composer, best known as the founder and member of the Los Angeles
avant-rock group
5uu's
. He is also a member of the Belgian
progressive rock
band Present
and the Israel
i avant-rock
band Ahvak. Kerman has been a member of the United States bands U Totem and Thinking Plague
, and the Dutch
band Blast. He has collaborated with several musicians, including Bob Drake
, Chris Cutler
and Fred Frith
.
Kerman lived in Israel between 2000 and 2003 and holds dual American and Israeli citizenship. He established RēR USA in 2003, the North America
n distributor of the British
independent record label
, Recommended Records
, and RēR USA's own record label, AD Hoc Records in 2006.
, south of Los Angeles
. At the age of six he started playing with the drum sticks, and at nine he auditioned for a percussionist in his school band. In spite of failing the audition, Grateful Dead
keyboardist Keith Godchaux
, family friend and neighbor, recognised potential in Kerman and suggested to Kerman's parents that they buy him a set of drums. Kerman's first public performance was at the age of 10 with a band of his that he had entered in a local talent contest. They deconstructed Led Zeppelin
's "Whole Lotta Love
" and added "a free-improv freakout section" into the middle of the song. Needless to say they did not win the competition.
In high school, Kerman formed a garage band
with guitarist Greg Conway and bassist Jon Beck. They began as a cover band
playing a mixture of Deep Purple
, King Crimson
and Lynyrd Skynyrd
songs but soon switched to experimenting with noise music
. Kerman also modified his drum kit to extend its capabilities, including adding telescoping metal tubing that changed pitch (made from old fire extinguisher
s), and stringing the bass drum shell with heavy-gauge strings that produced an un-tuned zither
sound. He also started using a variety of objects to strike his drum kit with, including kitchen utensils, golf clubs and Barbie dolls
.
In 1976 Kerman's band named themselves "Farmer Fred Genuflects to A-440" and played at a Greenpeace
Festival in San Diego, California
. While their performance did not go down very well, one concert goer recognised potential and suggested they listen to Henry Cow
and Faust
. These new influences prompted Kerman to begin exploring new compositional techniques and he started writing experimental songs for his band. Even though Kerman was a drummer, he taught himself guitar and keyboards to compose on.
After finishing school, Kerman attended California State University, Dominguez Hills
where he studied electronic
and contemporary music under professors Marshall Bialosky and David Champion. At the time he also studied audio engineering
at the Sound-Master Institute with Brian Ingoldsby.
and took on the name 5uu's
. They began recording their first album in 1984 and went on to make five more albums, an EP
and a single
. 5uu's were also regularly featured on Recommended Records
' Quarterly Magazine
installments, with specially commissioned pieces, which were available nowhere else.The band toured 25 cities in Western Europe
and 14 cities in Eastern Europe
during 1995. The 5uu's has been Kerman's principal band, for which he is best known. He composed most of the music for this group.
. U Totem toured Europe and North America and made two albums, and Kerman remained with the band until its demise in 1994. While in Europe with U Totem in 1993, guitarist/composer Roger Trigaux of the Belgian
progressive rock band Present
, asked Kerman to replace drummer Daniel Denis, who was leaving. Kerman joined Present and has remained with the band ever since, appearing on their 2009 DVD and on five of their albums. He has also toured Europe and North America with them several times. In 2007, the band hosted the first "Rock In Opposition France Event" in Carmaux, France; and during September 2009, Kerman and the entire Present band performed live as a special, extended group with all members of Univers Zero
at the 2009 installment of the same festival. At the 2011 version of the festival, both bands again appeared together, but added a third Belgian band to the line-up (Aranis), bringing the total number of musicians onstage to 17. This grouping now goes by the name, Once Upon a Time in Belgium.
In 1989 Bob Drake
from the Denver based avant-rock group Thinking Plague
left the band and moved to Los Angeles where he met Kerman. Kerman had been interested in Thinking Plague's music and moved to Denver in 1989 to join the band. He remained with Thinking Plague for eleven years, performed live with them at NEARfest
2000 and is featured on three of their albums.
When U Totem broke up in 1994, Kerman reformed the 5uu's with Drake and Sanjay Kumar. In 1995 Kerman and Drake moved into an old unoccupied farm house in Caudeval in southern France
owned by ex-Henry Cow drummer Chris Cutler and sound engineer EM (Maggie) Thomas. Cutler and Thomas had purchased the farm a few years earlier with a view to using it as a recording studio. Kerman and Drake undertook the task of renovating and converting the farm house, and it was named Studio Midi-Pyrenees, with Drake the resident engineer/producer. In 1996 Kerman joined the Dutch
avant-garde band Blast, recorded one album and toured Europe and North America with them.
In 2000 Kerman relocated to Tel Aviv
in Israel
where he teamed up with engineer/producer Udi Koomran to continue work with the 5uu's. He also spent much of his time working for the Israeli Batsheva Dance Company
. In 2002 Kerman and Koomran started a new band in Israel called Ahvak (Hebrew
for "Dust") in a similar vein to U Totem and Thinking Plague. Ahvak played at the Tritonale Festival in Paris
in 2004 and released a self-titled album the same year.
In 2002 Kerman wrote a series of editorial
s on progressive rock for Exposé, a United States quarterly music publication, entitled "Earth to Josh: Prog Is Dead" (Exposé #25, September 2002), "The Further Adventures of Josh" (Exposé #26, February 2003) and "The continuing story of Josh" (Exposé #27, August 2003).
Kerman moved back to Denver in 2003 where he guested on Thinking Plague's A History of Madness (2003). He also established RēR USA in Denver in 2003, the North American distributor of the Chris Cutler's British
independent record label
, Recommended Records
. In 2006 he created RēR USA's own record label, AD Hoc Records.
In 2007 Kerman joined Bob Drake's Cabinet of Curiosities, a live band comprising Drake (guitar, vocals, violin, banjo), David Campbell (guitar, bass, vocals) and Kerman (drums), plus a few guest musicians for each performance. In June 2007 they played at NEARfest
in Pennsylvania
with guests Olivier Tejedor (keyboards) and Lynnette Shelley (vocals) and then undertook a Midwest/ East Coast tour in Autumn of 2008. By April 2008 Kerman had re-joined Thinking Plague after a seven year absence. During that month the band performed a series of concerts in Paris
, Frankfurt
, Geneva
, Milan
and at the Gouveia Festival in Portugal
. In Spring 2009, Thinking Plague reformed with a new keyboardist, Kimara Sajn, for a small amount of local gigs (Colorado) before rehearsals for another album.
In September 2009, Kerman, along with Present keyboardists Pierre Chevalier and Ward De Vleeschhouwer, became members of Aranis, a critically acclaimed, Flemish chamber-rock group. This grouping also uses the pseudonym, "Voltage". The premiere performance of this formation took place in March, 2010 in Antwerp.
Kerman is married to the Swiss singer, Michèle Fuchs; The couple reside between Denver, Colorado and Basel, Switzerland.
With U Totem
With Bob Drake
With Present
With Blast
With Thinking Plague
With Ahvak
With Aranis
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
experimental rock
Experimental rock
Experimental rock or avant-garde rock is a type of music based on rock which experiments with the basic elements of the genre, or which pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique....
drummer and composer, best known as the founder and member of the Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
avant-rock group
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
5uu's
5uu's
The 5uu's were an American avant-rock group founded in Los Angeles, California in 1984 by drummer-composer Dave Kerman. The group released their first album in 1986 and recorded a second in 1988 with Motor Totemist Guild, a similar band from the area. The two groups merged in 1988 to form U Totem...
. He is also a member of the Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
band Present
Present (band)
Present is a Belgian progressive rock group formed by guitarist Roger Trigaux in 1979.- Biography :Trigaux was a founding member of Univers Zero and participated on the first two albums. After Heresie he left Univers Zero to concentrate on his own vision and founded Present...
and the Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i avant-rock
Experimental rock
Experimental rock or avant-garde rock is a type of music based on rock which experiments with the basic elements of the genre, or which pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique....
band Ahvak. Kerman has been a member of the United States bands U Totem and Thinking Plague
Thinking Plague
Thinking Plague is a United States avant-rock group founded in 1982 by guitarist/composer, Mike Johnson, and bass guitarist/drummer, Bob Drake. Based in Denver, Colorado, the band has been active off and on since 1982, taking on a number of musicians over the years...
, and the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
band Blast. He has collaborated with several musicians, including Bob Drake
Bob Drake (musician)
Bob Drake is an American multi-instrumentalist musician and recording engineer. He was a founding member of the avant-rock band Thinking Plague in the early 1980s, and a member of the 5uu's, Hail and The Science Group . He formed his own band, Bob Drake's Cabinet of Curiosities in 2007...
, Chris Cutler
Chris Cutler
Chris Cutler is an English percussionist, composer, lyricist and music theorist. Best known for his work with English avant-rock group Henry Cow, Cutler was also a member and drummer of a number of other bands, including Art Bears, News from Babel, Pere Ubu and Gong/Mothergong...
and Fred Frith
Fred Frith
Fred Frith is an English multi-instrumentalist, composer and improvisor.Probably best known for his guitar work, Frith first came to attention as one of the founding members of the English avant-rock group Henry Cow. Frith was also a member of Art Bears, Massacre and Skeleton Crew...
.
Kerman lived in Israel between 2000 and 2003 and holds dual American and Israeli citizenship. He established RēR USA in 2003, the North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
n distributor of the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
independent record label
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
, Recommended Records
Recommended Records
Recommended Records is a British independent record label and distribution network founded by Chris Cutler in March 1978. RēR features largely "Rock in Opposition" and related music, but it also distributes selected music released on other independent labels.In 1982 Cutler established November...
, and RēR USA's own record label, AD Hoc Records in 2006.
Biography
Dave Kerman was born in Torrance, CaliforniaTorrance, California
Torrance is a city incorporated in 1921 and located in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. Torrance has of shore-front beaches on the Pacific Ocean, quieter and less well-known by tourists than others on the Santa Monica Bay, such as those of neighboring...
, south of Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. At the age of six he started playing with the drum sticks, and at nine he auditioned for a percussionist in his school band. In spite of failing the audition, Grateful Dead
Grateful Dead
The Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in 1965 in the San Francisco Bay Area. The band was known for its unique and eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, bluegrass, blues, reggae, country, improvisational jazz, psychedelia, and space rock, and for live performances of long...
keyboardist Keith Godchaux
Keith Godchaux
Keith Richard Godchaux was a musician best known for his tenure in the rock group the Grateful Dead.-Biography:Keith Godchaux was born in Seattle, Washington and grew up in Concord, California...
, family friend and neighbor, recognised potential in Kerman and suggested to Kerman's parents that they buy him a set of drums. Kerman's first public performance was at the age of 10 with a band of his that he had entered in a local talent contest. They deconstructed Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
's "Whole Lotta Love
Whole Lotta Love
"Whole Lotta Love" is a song by English rock band Led Zeppelin. It is featured as the opening track on the band's second album, Led Zeppelin II, and was released in the United States and Japan as a single. The US release became their first hit single, it was certified Gold on 13 April 1970, when it...
" and added "a free-improv freakout section" into the middle of the song. Needless to say they did not win the competition.
In high school, Kerman formed a garage band
Garage band
The term garage band can refer to:* A band that performs garage rock* GarageBand, audio production software published by Apple Inc.* GarageBand.com, a website that helps publicize emerging bands...
with guitarist Greg Conway and bassist Jon Beck. They began as a cover band
Cover band
A cover band , is a band that plays mostly or exclusively cover songs. New or unknown bands often find the cover band format marketable for smaller gigs, and these bands may be known as a wedding band, party band and function band. A band whose covers consist mainly of songs that were chart hits is...
playing a mixture of Deep Purple
Deep Purple
Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford in 1968. Along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although some band members believe that their music cannot be categorised as belonging to any one genre...
, King Crimson
King Crimson
King Crimson are a rock band founded in London, England in 1969. Often categorised as a foundational progressive rock group, the band have incorporated diverse influences and instrumentation during their history...
and Lynyrd Skynyrd
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Lynyrd Skynyrd is an American rock band prominent in spreading Southern Rock during the 1970s.Originally formed as the "Noble Five" in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1964, the band rose to worldwide recognition on the basis of its driving live performances and signature tune, Freebird...
songs but soon switched to experimenting with noise music
Noise music
Noise music is a term used to describe varieties of avant-garde music and sound art that may use elements such as cacophony, dissonance, atonality, noise, indeterminacy, and repetition in their realization. Noise music can feature distortion, various types of acoustically or electronically...
. Kerman also modified his drum kit to extend its capabilities, including adding telescoping metal tubing that changed pitch (made from old fire extinguisher
Fire extinguisher
A fire extinguisher or extinguisher, flame entinguisher is an active fire protection device used to extinguish or control small fires, often in emergency situations...
s), and stringing the bass drum shell with heavy-gauge strings that produced an un-tuned zither
Zither
The zither is a musical string instrument, most commonly found in Slovenia, Austria, Hungary citera, northwestern Croatia, the southern regions of Germany, alpine Europe and East Asian cultures, including China...
sound. He also started using a variety of objects to strike his drum kit with, including kitchen utensils, golf clubs and Barbie dolls
Barbie
Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by the American toy-company Mattel, Inc. and launched in March 1959. American businesswoman Ruth Handler is credited with the creation of the doll using a German doll called Bild Lilli as her inspiration....
.
In 1976 Kerman's band named themselves "Farmer Fred Genuflects to A-440" and played at a Greenpeace
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
Festival in San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
. While their performance did not go down very well, one concert goer recognised potential and suggested they listen to Henry Cow
Henry Cow
Henry Cow were an English avant-rock group, founded at Cambridge University in 1968 by multi-instrumentalists Fred Frith and Tim Hodgkinson. Henry Cow's personnel fluctuated over their decade together, but drummer Chris Cutler and bassoonist/oboist Lindsay Cooper were important long-term members...
and Faust
Faust (band)
Faust are a German krautrock band. Formed in 1971 in Wümme, the group was originally composed of Werner "Zappi" Diermaier, Hans Joachim Irmler, Arnulf Meifert, Jean-Hervé Péron, Rudolf Sosna and Gunther Wüsthoff, working with record producer Uwe Nettelbeck and engineer Kurt Graupner.-History:Faust...
. These new influences prompted Kerman to begin exploring new compositional techniques and he started writing experimental songs for his band. Even though Kerman was a drummer, he taught himself guitar and keyboards to compose on.
After finishing school, Kerman attended California State University, Dominguez Hills
California State University, Dominguez Hills
California State University, Dominguez Hills is a public university located in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County and was founded in 1960...
where he studied electronic
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
and contemporary music under professors Marshall Bialosky and David Champion. At the time he also studied audio engineering
Audio engineering
An audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
at the Sound-Master Institute with Brian Ingoldsby.
5uu's
By the early 1980s Kerman's band was playing progressive rockProgressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
and took on the name 5uu's
5uu's
The 5uu's were an American avant-rock group founded in Los Angeles, California in 1984 by drummer-composer Dave Kerman. The group released their first album in 1986 and recorded a second in 1988 with Motor Totemist Guild, a similar band from the area. The two groups merged in 1988 to form U Totem...
. They began recording their first album in 1984 and went on to make five more albums, an EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
and a single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
. 5uu's were also regularly featured on Recommended Records
Recommended Records
Recommended Records is a British independent record label and distribution network founded by Chris Cutler in March 1978. RēR features largely "Rock in Opposition" and related music, but it also distributes selected music released on other independent labels.In 1982 Cutler established November...
' Quarterly Magazine
ReR Quarterly
The RēR Quarterly was an English "quarterly" sound-magazine comprising an LP record and a magazine. It was published at irregular intervals between 1985 and 1997 by Recommended Records and November Books, and edited by English percussionist, lyricist and music theorist, Chris Cutler...
installments, with specially commissioned pieces, which were available nowhere else.The band toured 25 cities in Western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
and 14 cities in Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
during 1995. The 5uu's has been Kerman's principal band, for which he is best known. He composed most of the music for this group.
Other bands and projects
In 1988 the 5uu's and another Los Angeles band, Motor Totemists Guild merged to form U Totem to play at the Frankfurt Art Rock Festival in GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. U Totem toured Europe and North America and made two albums, and Kerman remained with the band until its demise in 1994. While in Europe with U Totem in 1993, guitarist/composer Roger Trigaux of the Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
progressive rock band Present
Present (band)
Present is a Belgian progressive rock group formed by guitarist Roger Trigaux in 1979.- Biography :Trigaux was a founding member of Univers Zero and participated on the first two albums. After Heresie he left Univers Zero to concentrate on his own vision and founded Present...
, asked Kerman to replace drummer Daniel Denis, who was leaving. Kerman joined Present and has remained with the band ever since, appearing on their 2009 DVD and on five of their albums. He has also toured Europe and North America with them several times. In 2007, the band hosted the first "Rock In Opposition France Event" in Carmaux, France; and during September 2009, Kerman and the entire Present band performed live as a special, extended group with all members of Univers Zero
Univers Zéro
Univers Zero are an instrumental Belgian band known for playing dark music heavily influenced by 20th century chamber music. The group's name has had three variant spellings, the others being Univers Zéro and Univers-Zero....
at the 2009 installment of the same festival. At the 2011 version of the festival, both bands again appeared together, but added a third Belgian band to the line-up (Aranis), bringing the total number of musicians onstage to 17. This grouping now goes by the name, Once Upon a Time in Belgium.
In 1989 Bob Drake
Bob Drake (musician)
Bob Drake is an American multi-instrumentalist musician and recording engineer. He was a founding member of the avant-rock band Thinking Plague in the early 1980s, and a member of the 5uu's, Hail and The Science Group . He formed his own band, Bob Drake's Cabinet of Curiosities in 2007...
from the Denver based avant-rock group Thinking Plague
Thinking Plague
Thinking Plague is a United States avant-rock group founded in 1982 by guitarist/composer, Mike Johnson, and bass guitarist/drummer, Bob Drake. Based in Denver, Colorado, the band has been active off and on since 1982, taking on a number of musicians over the years...
left the band and moved to Los Angeles where he met Kerman. Kerman had been interested in Thinking Plague's music and moved to Denver in 1989 to join the band. He remained with Thinking Plague for eleven years, performed live with them at NEARfest
NEARfest
The North East Art Rock Festival, or NEARfest for short, is a multi-day event celebrating the resurgence of progressive and eclectic music in the United States and around the world. The event is held annually in early summer in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, approximately one hour north of Philadelphia...
2000 and is featured on three of their albums.
Southern France
Southern France , colloquially known as le Midi is defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Gironde, Spain, the Mediterranean, and Italy...
owned by ex-Henry Cow drummer Chris Cutler and sound engineer EM (Maggie) Thomas. Cutler and Thomas had purchased the farm a few years earlier with a view to using it as a recording studio. Kerman and Drake undertook the task of renovating and converting the farm house, and it was named Studio Midi-Pyrenees, with Drake the resident engineer/producer. In 1996 Kerman joined the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
avant-garde band Blast, recorded one album and toured Europe and North America with them.
In 2000 Kerman relocated to Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
where he teamed up with engineer/producer Udi Koomran to continue work with the 5uu's. He also spent much of his time working for the Israeli Batsheva Dance Company
Batsheva Dance Company
The Batsheva Dance Company is an internationally acclaimed dance company based in Tel Aviv, Israel. It was founded by Martha Graham and Baroness Batsheva De Rothschild in 1964....
. In 2002 Kerman and Koomran started a new band in Israel called Ahvak (Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
for "Dust") in a similar vein to U Totem and Thinking Plague. Ahvak played at the Tritonale Festival in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 2004 and released a self-titled album the same year.
In 2002 Kerman wrote a series of editorial
Editorial
An opinion piece is an article, published in a newspaper or magazine, that mainly reflects the author's opinion about the subject. Opinion pieces are featured in many periodicals.-Editorials:...
s on progressive rock for Exposé, a United States quarterly music publication, entitled "Earth to Josh: Prog Is Dead" (Exposé #25, September 2002), "The Further Adventures of Josh" (Exposé #26, February 2003) and "The continuing story of Josh" (Exposé #27, August 2003).
Kerman moved back to Denver in 2003 where he guested on Thinking Plague's A History of Madness (2003). He also established RēR USA in Denver in 2003, the North American distributor of the Chris Cutler's British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
independent record label
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
, Recommended Records
Recommended Records
Recommended Records is a British independent record label and distribution network founded by Chris Cutler in March 1978. RēR features largely "Rock in Opposition" and related music, but it also distributes selected music released on other independent labels.In 1982 Cutler established November...
. In 2006 he created RēR USA's own record label, AD Hoc Records.
In 2007 Kerman joined Bob Drake's Cabinet of Curiosities, a live band comprising Drake (guitar, vocals, violin, banjo), David Campbell (guitar, bass, vocals) and Kerman (drums), plus a few guest musicians for each performance. In June 2007 they played at NEARfest
NEARfest
The North East Art Rock Festival, or NEARfest for short, is a multi-day event celebrating the resurgence of progressive and eclectic music in the United States and around the world. The event is held annually in early summer in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, approximately one hour north of Philadelphia...
in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
with guests Olivier Tejedor (keyboards) and Lynnette Shelley (vocals) and then undertook a Midwest/ East Coast tour in Autumn of 2008. By April 2008 Kerman had re-joined Thinking Plague after a seven year absence. During that month the band performed a series of concerts in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
, Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
and at the Gouveia Festival in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
. In Spring 2009, Thinking Plague reformed with a new keyboardist, Kimara Sajn, for a small amount of local gigs (Colorado) before rehearsals for another album.
In September 2009, Kerman, along with Present keyboardists Pierre Chevalier and Ward De Vleeschhouwer, became members of Aranis, a critically acclaimed, Flemish chamber-rock group. This grouping also uses the pseudonym, "Voltage". The premiere performance of this formation took place in March, 2010 in Antwerp.
Kerman is married to the Swiss singer, Michèle Fuchs; The couple reside between Denver, Colorado and Basel, Switzerland.
Discography
With 5uu's5uu's
The 5uu's were an American avant-rock group founded in Los Angeles, California in 1984 by drummer-composer Dave Kerman. The group released their first album in 1986 and recorded a second in 1988 with Motor Totemist Guild, a similar band from the area. The two groups merged in 1988 to form U Totem...
- Bel Marduk & Tiamat (1986, LP, U:r Records, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) - Bar Code (1987, 7", Rotary Totem Records, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) - Elements (with Motor Totemist Guild) (1988, LP, Rotary Totem Records, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) - Hunger's TeethHunger's TeethHunger's Teeth is a 1994 studio album by the American avant-rock group 5uu's. It was the first album by the band since they reformed in 1994 and featured the new line-up of Dave Kerman, Sanjay Kumar and Bob Drake....
(1994, CD, Recommended RecordsRecommended RecordsRecommended Records is a British independent record label and distribution network founded by Chris Cutler in March 1978. RēR features largely "Rock in Opposition" and related music, but it also distributes selected music released on other independent labels.In 1982 Cutler established November...
, U.K.United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
) - Crisis in Clay (1997, CD, Recommended RecordsRecommended RecordsRecommended Records is a British independent record label and distribution network founded by Chris Cutler in March 1978. RēR features largely "Rock in Opposition" and related music, but it also distributes selected music released on other independent labels.In 1982 Cutler established November...
, U.K.United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
) - Regarding Purgatories (2000, CD, Cuneiform RecordsCuneiform RecordsCuneiform Records is an independent record label based in Silver Spring, Maryland.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, including progressive jazz, modern fusion music, progressive rock, the Canterbury Scene and electronic music...
, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) - Abandonship (2002, CD, Cuneiform RecordsCuneiform RecordsCuneiform Records is an independent record label based in Silver Spring, Maryland.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, including progressive jazz, modern fusion music, progressive rock, the Canterbury Scene and electronic music...
, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) - Tel Aviv Construction Events 1–3 (2004, online download-only EP, Recommended RecordsRecommended RecordsRecommended Records is a British independent record label and distribution network founded by Chris Cutler in March 1978. RēR features largely "Rock in Opposition" and related music, but it also distributes selected music released on other independent labels.In 1982 Cutler established November...
, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
)
With U Totem
- U Totem (1990, CD, Cuneiform RecordsCuneiform RecordsCuneiform Records is an independent record label based in Silver Spring, Maryland.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, including progressive jazz, modern fusion music, progressive rock, the Canterbury Scene and electronic music...
, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) - Strange Attractors (1994, CD, Cuneiform RecordsCuneiform RecordsCuneiform Records is an independent record label based in Silver Spring, Maryland.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, including progressive jazz, modern fusion music, progressive rock, the Canterbury Scene and electronic music...
, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
)
With Bob Drake
Bob Drake (musician)
Bob Drake is an American multi-instrumentalist musician and recording engineer. He was a founding member of the avant-rock band Thinking Plague in the early 1980s, and a member of the 5uu's, Hail and The Science Group . He formed his own band, Bob Drake's Cabinet of Curiosities in 2007...
- What Day is It? (1994, CD, Crumbling Tombs, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) - Bob's Drive-In (2011, CD, Recommended RecordsRecommended RecordsRecommended Records is a British independent record label and distribution network founded by Chris Cutler in March 1978. RēR features largely "Rock in Opposition" and related music, but it also distributes selected music released on other independent labels.In 1982 Cutler established November...
, U.K.United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
)
With Present
Present (band)
Present is a Belgian progressive rock group formed by guitarist Roger Trigaux in 1979.- Biography :Trigaux was a founding member of Univers Zero and participated on the first two albums. After Heresie he left Univers Zero to concentrate on his own vision and founded Present...
- Live (1996, CD, Cuneiform RecordsCuneiform RecordsCuneiform Records is an independent record label based in Silver Spring, Maryland.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, including progressive jazz, modern fusion music, progressive rock, the Canterbury Scene and electronic music...
, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) - No 6 (1999, CD, Carbon 7, BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
) - High Infidelity (2001, CD, Carbon 7, BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
) - A Great Inhumane Adventure (2005, CD, Cuneiform RecordsCuneiform RecordsCuneiform Records is an independent record label based in Silver Spring, Maryland.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, including progressive jazz, modern fusion music, progressive rock, the Canterbury Scene and electronic music...
, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) - Barbaro (ma non troppo) (2009, CD + DVD, Ad Hoc Records, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
)
With Blast
- Stringy Rugs (1997, CD, Cuneiform RecordsCuneiform RecordsCuneiform Records is an independent record label based in Silver Spring, Maryland.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, including progressive jazz, modern fusion music, progressive rock, the Canterbury Scene and electronic music...
, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
)
With Thinking Plague
Thinking Plague
Thinking Plague is a United States avant-rock group founded in 1982 by guitarist/composer, Mike Johnson, and bass guitarist/drummer, Bob Drake. Based in Denver, Colorado, the band has been active off and on since 1982, taking on a number of musicians over the years...
- In Extremis (1998, CD, Cuneiform RecordsCuneiform RecordsCuneiform Records is an independent record label based in Silver Spring, Maryland.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, including progressive jazz, modern fusion music, progressive rock, the Canterbury Scene and electronic music...
, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) - Upon Both Your Houses (live at NEARfestNEARfestThe North East Art Rock Festival, or NEARfest for short, is a multi-day event celebrating the resurgence of progressive and eclectic music in the United States and around the world. The event is held annually in early summer in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, approximately one hour north of Philadelphia...
2000) (2004, CD, NEARfest Records, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
)
With Ahvak
- Ahvak (2004, CD, Cuneiform RecordsCuneiform RecordsCuneiform Records is an independent record label based in Silver Spring, Maryland.The label releases a mixture of musical styles, including progressive jazz, modern fusion music, progressive rock, the Canterbury Scene and electronic music...
, U.S.United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
)
With Aranis
- Roquefort (2010, CD, altrOck Productions, ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
)
Other featured recordings
- N.I.M.B.Y.: Songs For Adults
- Motor Totemist Guild: Contact With Veils
- Motor Totemist Guild: Shapuno Zoo
- Motor Totemist Guild: Omaggio a Futi
- Motor Totemist Guild: City of Mirrors
- Motor Totemist Guild: All-America City
- Fred FrithFred FrithFred Frith is an English multi-instrumentalist, composer and improvisor.Probably best known for his guitar work, Frith first came to attention as one of the founding members of the English avant-rock group Henry Cow. Frith was also a member of Art Bears, Massacre and Skeleton Crew...
: PrintsPrints (album)Prints: Snapshots, Postcards, Messages and Miniatures, 1987–2001 is a 2002 album by English guitarist, composer and improvisor Fred Frith, and his first album of songs since Cheap at Half the Price... - Fred Frith: Place of General Happiness
- A.A. Kismet: What's the Use of Crying When the Wolves Have Arrived?
- Noisemaker's Fife: Corpse
- Rascal Reporters: Happy Accidents
- Pox: Borgnine
- Yugen: Iridule
- Yugen: Laborinto d'Aqua
- Thinking PlagueThinking PlagueThinking Plague is a United States avant-rock group founded in 1982 by guitarist/composer, Mike Johnson, and bass guitarist/drummer, Bob Drake. Based in Denver, Colorado, the band has been active off and on since 1982, taking on a number of musicians over the years...
: A History of Madness - IZ: Em
- HailHail (band)Hail are an American indie/punk band with an avant-garde twist consisting of Susanne Lewis and Bob Drake . The band has also had guest appearances from Mike Johnson, Dave Kerman, Chris Cutler and Bill Gilonis. Albums include Gypsy Cat & Gypsy Bird , Turn of the Screw and Kirk...
: Kirk - Recommended Records Quarterly MagazineReR QuarterlyThe RēR Quarterly was an English "quarterly" sound-magazine comprising an LP record and a magazine. It was published at irregular intervals between 1985 and 1997 by Recommended Records and November Books, and edited by English percussionist, lyricist and music theorist, Chris Cutler...
: Vol.1 #1 - Recommended Records Quarterly MagazineReR QuarterlyThe RēR Quarterly was an English "quarterly" sound-magazine comprising an LP record and a magazine. It was published at irregular intervals between 1985 and 1997 by Recommended Records and November Books, and edited by English percussionist, lyricist and music theorist, Chris Cutler...
: Vol.2 #2 - Recommended Records Quarterly MagazineReR QuarterlyThe RēR Quarterly was an English "quarterly" sound-magazine comprising an LP record and a magazine. It was published at irregular intervals between 1985 and 1997 by Recommended Records and November Books, and edited by English percussionist, lyricist and music theorist, Chris Cutler...
: Vol.3 #3 - Recommended Records Quarterly MagazineReR QuarterlyThe RēR Quarterly was an English "quarterly" sound-magazine comprising an LP record and a magazine. It was published at irregular intervals between 1985 and 1997 by Recommended Records and November Books, and edited by English percussionist, lyricist and music theorist, Chris Cutler...
: Selections From Vol.1 - Recommended Records Quarterly MagazineReR QuarterlyThe RēR Quarterly was an English "quarterly" sound-magazine comprising an LP record and a magazine. It was published at irregular intervals between 1985 and 1997 by Recommended Records and November Books, and edited by English percussionist, lyricist and music theorist, Chris Cutler...
: Selections From Vol.2 - 5uu's5uu'sThe 5uu's were an American avant-rock group founded in Los Angeles, California in 1984 by drummer-composer Dave Kerman. The group released their first album in 1986 and recorded a second in 1988 with Motor Totemist Guild, a similar band from the area. The two groups merged in 1988 to form U Totem...
: Hoketemists – ReR #33 Subscription Item - 5uu's: Die Ind Austria Report #3
- 5uu's: KXLU Radio Archives
- 5uu's: Bad Alchemy #6
- 5uu's: A Beginner's Guide To COMA
- U Totem: COS Magazine Japan
- U Totem: Eyesores – A Stab At The Residents
- U Totem: Unsettled Scores
- U Totem: Cuneiform Sampler #1
- U Totem: Cuneiform Sampler #2
External links
- Dave Kerman homepage.
- Dave Kerman. Denver Westword.
- Interview with Dave Kerman, September 2005. Ragazzi: Website for exciting music.
- Interview with Dave Kerman, March 2003. Agarth: The Prog Music Dimension.
- Interview with Dave Kerman, November 2001. The GrEEN DoLPHiN's PoLL.