While it’s remarkably easy to lose track of how many ascensions there may or may not have been throughout human history, it’s nearly IMPOSSIBLE to forget the spiritually transformative legacy of the late avant garde guitarist/composer Glenn Branca, who, during his career, seemingly managed to musically divine not one but two such miracles.
Now, as Pitchfork reports, a new album entitled The Third Ascension will mark the first release from Branca and his eponymous ensemble since the artist’s death in 2018.
The recordings are culled from a two-night performance of the same name, which was undertaken back in February 2016. Scored for four electric guitars, bass, and drums — and predicated on the same structure as his previous two ascensions — “The Third Ascension” was performed by the The Glenn Branca Ensemble at The Kitchen in New York City, and the resultant audio will be released as a proper album on October 4 via SYSTEMS NEUTRALIZERS.
The ensemble will also be performing some of Branca’s works (for the first time since his passing) at the Brooklyn venue Saint Vitus on October 6 to commemorate what would have been the composer’s 71st birthday. head here for more information on the performance, and pre/re-spiritualize yourself with one of the ascension’s earlier incarnations down below:
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