Praxis

Praxis is the name of an ever-changing musical project, led by prolific producer Bill Laswell. Praxis combine elements of different musical genres such as funk, jazz, hip-hop and heavy metal into highly improvised music. First appearing in 1992 with the critically acclaimed Transmutation (Mutatis Mutandis), Laswell, guitarist Buckethead, keyboardist Bernie Worrell and drummer Brain have defined the direction of the band over the last 15 years. The group worked with many other artists such as Serj Tankian from System of a Down, Iggy Pop, and Les Claypool of Primus fame.

Biography

Early days

Bill Laswell initially used the name Praxis for an experimental solo EP recorded for Celluloid Records in 1984, simply named "1984".

1992 - 1996

The band's debut album, Transmutation (Mutatis Mutandis), released in 1992 was well received by critics and spawned the group's only single, the Bootsy Collins sung "Animal Behavior". Their next studio album, Sacrifist, released two years later featured John Zorn and Mick Harris from Painkiller. The obscure mix of death metal was not as acclaimed as their debut.
The same year saw the album Metatron which included the song "Wake the Dead". In 1996 the band toured Europe and recorded two live albums called Live in Poland and Transmutation Live containing material from shows in Zurich and Warsaw. Both albums featured members of the Invisibl Skratch Piklz. After the shows, the project broke up.

1997 - 2004

In 1997 Bill Laswell re-released his Material EP 1984 under the project's name. This was followed by the album Mold with Laswell introducing Pat Thrall, Peter Wetherbee and Alex Haas instead of Buckethead, Bryan Mantia and Bernie Worrell respectively. In 1998 Laswell contributed "Dreadnot" to the compilation Abstract Depressionism^[1] In the same year a first compilation album also containing two songs from the Death Cube K album Dreamatorium (Death Cube K is an anagram of Buckethead) was made available. In 1999 a re-worked version of Live in Poland was released as Warszawa. Little was heard of the band for the next years, while Brain and Buckethead played for Guns N' Roses and Laswell concentrated more on his dub releases.

2004 - present

Most original members reunited for a small tour in 2004 and began working on their next studio album Profanation (Preparation for a Coming Darkness), but due to the label going broke the project was put on hold for about three years. In 2005 Transmutation Live was re-worked and re-released as Zurich. Another live album called Tennessee 2004 was released in 2007.

On January 1, 2008 the studio album Profanation (Preparation for a Coming Darkness) was released in Japan with guest contributions by Serj Tankian, Mike Patton and Iggy Pop as well as Buckethead's old friend Maximum Bob and many more.

Notable guests

The following musicians have contributed to the various Praxis experiments:

Musical styles

Between the influence of Laswell and Buckethead, Praxis' musical experimentation in both studio, street and live settings have combined elements of mid-70’s Funkadelic & Miles Davis, hip-hop’s more avant-garde leanings, and Last Exit's ferocious yet organic jazz/metal aesthetic. Many of these experiments defined (and in some sense, invented) diverse, eclectic, and freeform genres including avant-garde, heavy metal, funk and jazz-fusion.

Discography

Studio Albums

• 1992: Transmutation (Mutatis Mutandis)
• 1994: Sacrifist
• 1994: Metatron
• 1998: Mold
• 2008: Profanation (Preparation for a Coming Darkness)

Singles

• 1992: Animal Behavior

EPs and Compilations

• 1984: 1984
• 1992: A Taste of Mutation
• 1998: Collection

Live

• 1997: Live in Poland
• 1997: Transmutation Live
• 1999: Warszawa
• 2005: Zurich
• 2007: Tennessee 2004

References

External links

• AMG article on Praxis
• Bill Laswell and Buckethead fan site