The acclaimed music producer joins Lawrence Peryer to explain why he has worked out of one Gowanus building since 1979, what the rezoning is displacing, and why he thinks genres behave like social movements, with their own looks, uniforms, and language.
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This week we're putting The Tonearm's needle on producer and engineer Martin Bisi.
Bisi has run BC Studio out of the Gowanus section of Brooklyn since 1981, recording Sonic Youth, Swans, Herbie Hancock's "Rockit," and countless others.
We discussed his new album, Dancing On The Power Lines, his ongoing community activism, the changing landscape of New York's music scene, and so much more. It’s a good one.
(The musical excerpts heard in the interview are from Martin Bisi's Dancing On The Power Lines)
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00:00 Intro
00:57 Canoeing the Gowanus Canal
01:22 Voice of Gowanus and the Rezoning Fight
02:34 The Worst Land Goes to the Poorest Residents
04:09 The Same Playbook Every Generation
05:00 Same Building Since 1979
06:53 Why Bars Matter More Than Institutions
09:38 Squats, Yippies, and the Pieman
11:33 The American Can Factory and Meeting Brian Eno
12:23 Living on Contaminated Ground
15:53 The Feral Corners Where You Can Still Play
16:36 Genres Are Social Movements
18:32 Separate Lanes and the Bright Lights of Max Fish
22:02 The Tape Op Article That Changed How He Was Seen
25:48 Hardcore, Hip Hop, and Disaffected Youth
26:43 Helmet's Betty and the Botched Guitars
28:26 DST Was a Jazz Drummer
29:13 The New Record and the Need to Rant
29:51 Nora Almeida, Cafe Rezone, and the Toxic Waiter
30:49 CubeSmart Sunset
32:14 How Sparrow Dive Became the Title Track
33:30 Anger as the Most Taboo Emotion
35:35 Comping Iggy Pop's Vocals
38:11 What You Give Up Recording Remotely
41:41 Celebrate Brooklyn and Public Money
44:15 A Hundred Guitars at Lincoln Center
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Visit Martin Bisi at https://www.martinbisi.com
and follow him on YouTube → http://youtube.com/user/iammartinbisi)
and Facebook → http://www.facebook.com/pages/Martin-Bisi/10025408974
Purchase 'Dancing On The Power Lines' from Bandcamp → https://martin-bisi.bandcamp.com/album/dancing-on-the-power-lines
or Qobuz → https://www.qobuz.com/us-en/album/dancing-on-the-power-lines-martin-bisi/jepcflz4rpi6q
and listen on your streaming platform of choice → https://album.link/i/6770869836
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For extensive show notes, links, and podcast information, go to https://podcast.thetonearm.com
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