Fascination with experimental electronic music is constantly taking him to new places
Exclusive video interview with FBPO’s Jon Liebman
January 24, 2022
Jair-Rôhm Parker Wells is all about exploring the outer edges of music. On his website, he describes himself as a “free jazz bass player, ambient music noise artist and improvisational avant garde jazz musician.” What that boils down to in plain language is that he’s a bassist and composer whose inclinations often take him into electronic and experimental territory.
American by nationality, Wells grew up in Germany, but later relocated to the United States, moving first to New York City in 1979 and later to New Orleans to study at Tulane University. The bassist eventually returned to NYC, where he founded Glass Thought, an experimental music group, and held a composer residency with the New York Theatre ensemble. Beyond that, he’s also an original member of the New Brunswick Jazz Musician’s Collective and the band Machine Gun, as well as a founder of Sweden’s Meeting Interdisciplinary Arts Festival. Over the years, Wells has collaborated with like-minded artists like Bob Belden, Karl Berger, Daniel Carter, Jaron Lanier, John Sinclair, and Shabacka Hutchings. He’s also released numerous solo albums, including Exquisite Noise, and Koheleth.
Watch our interview with Jair-Rohm!
See Jon’s blog, with key takeaways from this interview here.
