Naked City (band)
| Company type | Experimental music ensemble |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1988 |
| Founder | John Zorn |
| Defunct | 1993 |
| Headquarters | New York City , United States |
Key people | John Zorn (director, saxophonist and composer) |
| Products | Music albums, soundtracks |
Naked City was an experimental music ensemble directed by saxophonist and composer John Zorn. Primarily active in New York City between 1988 and 1993, Zorn envisioned Naked City as a "composition workshop" designed to explore the limits of both composition and improvisation within a conventional rock band framework. Their sound merged influences from jazz, surf, progressive rock, classical, heavy metal, grindcore, and punk rock.
History
Taking its name from a 1945 collection of stark black-and-white photographs by Weegee, the group presented a forceful blend of soundtrack motifs, blues-infused hard bop, rapid hardcore rock, frenetic free jazz, and metallic funk. Early on, their style was characterized by blistering tempos inspired by thrash metal and hardcore punk, with compositions frequently brief and shifting genres within moments. Critics labeled their work as "jump-cutting micro-collages" that spanned hardcore, country, jazz, and reinterpretations of pieces by composers such as John Barry and Ornette Coleman. This swift genre-hopping drew influence from Carl Stalling’s dynamic scores for Warner Bros. cartoons.
Naked City's first album appeared under Zorn's name via Nonesuch Records, featuring a cover photograph by Weegee depicting a deceased gangster, accompanied by dark illustrations from Maruo Suehiro. Zorn noted that the project transitioned from rhythm and blues/Spillane styles into hardcore due to his time living in Japan and an increasing fascination with hardcore music, which encouraged more concise songwriting. Controversies surrounding provocative cover art—including explicit S&M imagery and execution photographs—prompted Zorn to sever ties with Nonesuch, after which he released records through Shimmy Disc as well as his own Avant and Tzadik labels.
The 1989 release Torture Garden showcased intense "hardcore miniatures," consisting of brief pieces often under one minute in length. Several tracks from this album also appeared on their debut and resurfaced on Grand Guignol (1992), which additionally featured arrangements of compositions by Claude Debussy, Alexander Scriabin, Orlande de Lassus, Charles Ives, and Olivier Messiaen.
Their third studio album, Heretic (1992), contained short improvisations crafted for the soundtrack of the underground S/M film Jeux des Dames Cruelles. That same year saw the release of Leng Tch'e, a singular piece extending beyond thirty minutes. Radio (1993) marked the first album entirely composed by Zorn himself, displaying an extensive array of musical styles.
The group's final album, Absinthe (1993), combined ambient soundscapes with tracks named after fin de siècle Decadent personalities such as Paul Verlaine and Charles Baudelaire, including a tribute to Olivier Messiaen.
Zorn concluded Naked City's activity to focus on new musical projects with different ensembles. The band briefly reunited in 2003 for two special anniversary concerts held in Amsterdam and Warsaw.
Cinematic associations
The ensemble performed a variety of film score compositions, including pieces by Georges Delerue. The album Heretic served as the official soundtrack for a motion picture featuring Karen Finley.
Selections such as "Bonehead" and "Hellraiser" from the Torture Garden album are used during the introduction of Michael Haneke's film Funny Games as well as its 2007 remake.
Members of the band
- John Zorn – alto saxophone
- Bill Frisell – electric guitar
- Fred Frith – bass guitar
- Wayne Horvitz – keyboards
- Joey Baron – drums
- Yamatsuka Eye – vocals
- Performing members
- Mike Patton – vocals (1991, 2003)
- Cyro Baptista – percussion (1989)
- Carol Emanuel – harp (1989)
- Kermit Driscoll – bass (1988)
Recordings
Studio releases
- Naked City (1990)
- Grand Guignol (1992)
- Heretic (1992)
- Leng Tch'e (1992)
- Radio (1993)
- Absinthe (1993)
Live recordings
Compilation collections
- Torture Garden (features "hardcore miniatures" also found on Naked City and Grand Guignol) (1990)
- Black Box (combines Torture Garden and the Japan-exclusive release Leng Tch'e) (1996)
- Naked City: The Complete Studio Recordings (Box Set) (2005)