Close Enough for Jazz

Tired of the old jazz paradigm? We call this Close Enough for Jazz because "Modern-Avant-Garde-Polyrhythmic-Sound-Art" was too long for the RSS feed. Join Lindsay and Alan Bjorklund (Birch Grove Media) for unfiltered dialogues with the composers and improvisers pushing the boundaries of the modern and avant-garde jazz scene. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Close Enough for Jazz is a music podcast hosted by Birch Grove, with 24 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Birch Grove hosts Close Enough for Jazz, a music show with 24 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

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  Episode #23

  Anthropic, Media Destruction, and the Dystopian Future of Music AI

  Aug 6, 202626 minS1

  We explore the dystopian reality of tech companies destroying physical media to train their AI models and what this terrifying trend could mean for the future of the music industry. In this episode, we discuss the alarming revelation that Anthropic, the company behind Claude, has been purchasing physical books, chopping off their spines, and destroying them to ingest their data. We examine the "first-sale doctrine" loophole, recent reports from 404 Media about bulk-buying pre-2022 literature, and Lindsay compares this aggressive consumption of physical history to the "firemen" in Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 . Shifting to our own industry, we analyze the Capitol Records v. ReDigi case and theorize about a future where tech giants purchase classic music catalogs solely to train AI models to perfectly clone legendary artists.  Special Note: All the musical excerpts in this episode are from Smirk's "Not Your Grandfather's Jazz" that can be found at birchgrove.io.   Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro: A dystopian AI episode 00:25 - Staying on top of AI in the music industry 01:57 - How Anthropic scanned and destroyed physical books to train Claude 03:54 - The "first sale doctrine" and the publishers' lawsuit 05:51 - 404 Media's report on ISBNdb and bulk-buying pre-2022 books 08:25 - Destroying physical history for AI slop-free data 09:36 - Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 and AI as the new "firemen" 11:45 - Private equity firms buying up music catalogs 13:45 - The Capitol Records v. ReDigi case and digital audio files 15:03 - The terrifying potential of feeding classic catalogs into AI 18:00 - Are there legal loopholes for shredding records like books? 21:18 - Treating art and physical media as nothing but data for the machine 24:29 - The theoretical scenario of an AI cloning George Clinton's catalog 25:34 - Outro: Let us know your thoughts in the comments BIRCH GROVE MEDIA Web: birchgrove.io Follow us: @birch.grove.media on Instagram. Watch on YouTube: youtube.com/@BirchGroveMedia Get the Record: Shop our current 180g LP and digital releases on our website. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  Episode #22

  The Disappearing Middle Class of Music Venues

  Jul 30, 202637 minS1

  We record through a tornado warning to explore the global crisis facing live music venues, from the Live Nation antitrust lawsuit to the tragic closure of historic jazz clubs. In this episode, we break down the current state of music venues by analyzing the "ladder" of the live music industry. We discuss the recent Department of Justice antitrust ruling against Live Nation and Ticketmaster, before moving down the ladder to look at the devastating squeeze on mid-sized venues—the "missing middle"—and the recent closures of spaces like the Music Hall of Williamsburg, Highline Ballroom, and Stanhope House. Finally, we discuss the small-cap scene and legendary spots like the 55 Bar, Saint Vitus, and the Cotton Club. We also analyze new data on Gen Z's spending and drinking habits, noting a massive shift toward upscale, hybrid "treat yourself" venues and questioning how touring independent bands will survive without the traditional dive bar circuit. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro: Recording through a tornado warning  01:25 - Defining the venue size "ladder" and its impact on musicians  03:22 - Large Venues: Madison Square Garden, Terminal 5, and Brooklyn Steel  04:39 - The DOJ antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster  08:08 - The Ticketmaster settlement and what it means for consumers  10:26 - Medium Venues: The "missing middle" and soaring tour costs  12:48 - Tragic closures: Music Hall of Williamsburg, Highline Ballroom, and The Well  16:04 - The end of the Stanhope House in New Jersey  17:21 - Small Venues: Dive bars, DIY spaces, and the end of the 55 Bar  18:46 - What happened to Saint Vitus Bar and Bowery Electric?  22:56 - Jazz Standard and the historic Cotton Club close their doors  25:11 - Debunking data on Gen Z drinking and spending habits  29:03 - The death of the middle class and the rise of upscale hybrid venues  34:25 - Outro: Are festivals like Big Ears the solution for touring bands?  BIRCH GROVE MEDIA Web: birchgrove.io Follow us: @birch.grove.media on Instagram. Watch on YouTube: youtube.com/@BirchGroveMedia Get the Record: Shop our current 180g LP and digital releases on our website. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  Episode #21

  The Bling Pig Series - Bootleg from July 23, 2012

  Jul 23, 202630 minS1

  We open the vault for the second installment of our Blind Pig series, traveling back 14 years to July 23, 2012, for a rare bootleg recording of Nicolas Letman-Burtinovic's Bomb X. Captured on an iPod left on the floor of the Brooklyn venue Sycamore, this unreleased set features an incredible lineup with Michael Attias on saxophone, Art Hirahara on piano, and Tyshawn Sorey on drums. We unpack the context of this performance—which shared a bill with Alan's band, Smirk—and reflect on what these heavyweights were up to in 2012, from Letman-Burtinovic's extended arco techniques to Tyshawn Sorey's prestigious ICE fellowship. Note: Birch Grove Media does not own the recordings featured in this episode. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro: What is a Blind Pig speakeasy? 01:48 - Traveling back 14 years to July 23, 2012 02:17 - Introducing Nicolas Letman-Burtinovic's Bomb X 03:22 - Discovering the gig was recorded on an iPod 06:53 - Art Hirahara’s unexpected avant-garde piano playing 07:18 - Playing a double bill with Smirk at Sycamore in Brooklyn 09:45 - Michael Attias and the lost Brown House bootleg tapes 16:29 - Nicolas Letman-Burtinovic's extended bass techniques and protest music 22:49 - A snapshot of Michael Attias's 2012 album releases 23:44 - What Art Hirahara and Tyshawn Sorey were up to in 2012 29:15 - Outro: Tyshawn Sorey's abrupt endings BIRCH GROVE MEDIA Web: birchgrove.io Follow us: @birch.grove.media on Instagram. Watch on YouTube: youtube.com/@BirchGroveMedia Get the Record: Shop our current 180g LP and digital releases on our website. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  Episode #20

  Face’s Upcoming Album and the Glory Days of the Bushwick Loft Scene

  Jul 16, 202621 minS1

  We step back to the gritty 2009 Brooklyn loft scene to announce the upcoming Birch Grove Media vinyl release of Fall 2009 by Alan's acoustic avant-garde band, Face. In this episode, we explore the origins of the group, tracking their evolution from high school friendships to playing lost Brooklyn venues like Goodbye Blue Monday and Evening Time Place. Alan breaks down the cast of characters, including the late Andrew Carrico, David Schnug, Pascal Niggenkemper, Cody Brown, and vocalist Matt Scollante—whose intense, yelling spoken-word performance at The Stone gave this album an explicit warning. We also take a clinical look at the realities of early DIY recording, with Alan explaining how he salvaged a highly flawed, 44.1kHz session recorded on cheap gear using modern audio plugins. Packed with stories about the "Almost V-Day Suite" and the parallel run of his electric band Smirk, this episode captures a definitive era of Brooklyn music ahead of the album's double vinyl release alongside Bear Skinner later this year. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro: A yelling vocalist at The Stone  00:30 - Announcing the release of Face's Fall 2009 album  01:05 - The cast of characters: David Schnug, Pascal Niggenkemper, and more  02:00 - High school connections and moving to a Brooklyn Bedford Avenue apartment  03:45 - How the band's instrumentation evolved from the "Actually Actually" trio  05:27 - Remembering baritone saxophonist Andrew Carrico  06:43 - Recording the album on Halloween 2009 at the "Evening Time Place" loft  08:19 - The thriving 2009-2012 Bushwick loft scene and lost Brooklyn venues  10:00 - Face as a working acoustic band vs. the electric Smirk project  12:58 - Matt Scollante's unique spoken word performance  14:26 - Writing the "Almost V-Day Suite" over four years  16:56 - Salvaging a flawed 44.1kHz DIY recording with modern audio plugins  19:11 - The double vinyl release plan for Face and Bear Skinner  19:57 - Outro: Pick up the Smirk vinyl   Podcast Footer: BIRCH GROVE MEDIA Web: birchgrove.io Follow us: @birch.grove.media on Instagram. Watch on YouTube: youtube.com/@BirchGroveMedia Get the Record: Shop our current 180g LP and digital releases on our website. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  Episode #19

  The 1985 AI Music Prophecies from a Computer Science Genius

  Jul 9, 202630 minS1

  We unearth a 41-year-old time capsule from the first edition of OPtion Magazine that accurately predicted the rise of AI in music. We review a 1985 article by computer scientist Eric Mueller, who envisioned "interactive works" where AI reacts to live human improvisation and "distributed works" that use dial-up phone lines to connect musicians and computers in a massive feedback loop. The conversation traces Mueller's impressive background—from developing the DAYDREAMER program at UCLA to his work on IBM's Watson—and contrasts his highly experimental, avant-garde vision of AI with the style-cloning algorithms of today. We also discuss the LISP programming language, Stefon Harris's Harmony Cloud, and the debate over whether software is truly more interesting than hardware. Note: Birch Grove Media does not own the recordings featured in this episode. Featured Musical Examples: George Lewis Rainbow Family Premiere: https://youtu.be/i4bS-0tsVEg Laurie Spiegel on Algorithmic Composition: https://youtu.be/aJBDHxyLEHg Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro: What happens when the AI freezes up? 00:31 - Unearthing a 1985 AI music time capsule from OPtion Magazine 01:46 - Eric Mueller's "Entangling Computers and Music" 03:23 - The concept of "interactive works" and reactionary AI 04:34 - Comparing early AI ideas to Stefon Harris's Harmony Cloud 08:43 - Will musicians become programmers and vice versa? 10:42 - Feeding the program multiple source elements for complex reactions 13:22 - "Distributed works" and the concept of dial-up avant-garde music 17:52 - Learning the LISP programming language in 1985 20:04 - Debating if software is truly more interesting than hardware 22:41 - Eric Mueller's background with UCLA, MIT, and IBM's Watson 26:41 - Why 1980s AI concepts lend themselves perfectly to avant-garde jazz 27:28 - Interactive free improvisation vs. modern AI cloning apps 29:14 - The legacy of OPtion Magazine and its focus on experimental music BIRCH GROVE MEDIA Web: birchgrove.io Follow us: @birch.grove.media on Instagram. Watch on YouTube: youtube.com/@BirchGroveMedia Get the Record: Shop our current 180g LP and digital releases on our website. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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