Accidental (album)


Accidental is a studio album by English guitarist, composer and improvisor Fred Frith. It is the third of a series of Music for Dance albums Frith made, and was recorded between December 1995 and January 1996 at Studio Jankowski in Stuttgart, Germany. The album was released on CD in March 2002 on Fred Records and was the first release in Frith's archival release program on the record label.

Background

Accidental was commissioned in 1995 by the British choreographer Paul Selwyn Norton for the dance piece "Rogue Tool", with funding provided by the British Council through the British/Israeli cultural initiative, BI Arts. "Rogue Tool" was premiered by the Batsheva Dance Company in Tel Aviv, Israel in February 1996.
Frith constructed the music on Accidental using a principle he called "block-melodies" and he incorporated random events, or "accidents", into the compositions, including "found sounds" and field recordings, to trigger new patterns. Frith explained the background to the making of the album:

Reception

Bill Tilland of the BBC wrote in a review of this album:

Track listing

  1. "The Tangled Bank" – 3:40
  2. "Hit and Run" – 2:57
  3. "Gatto Nero" – 1:33
  4. "Old Geometry" – 2:24
  5. "Their Blood is Black and Yellow" – 4:33
  6. "In a Heartbeat" – 1:15
  7. "Fooled Again" – 5:04
  8. "Accidental" – 3:27
  9. "Absinthe Memories " – 3:00
  10. "Incoming" – 6:20
  11. "Almighty Home at Last" – 5:12

    Personnel