Ex-Org marks the latest chapter for Extended Organ, an ensemble born in the innovative circles of the Los Angeles Free Music Society (LAFMS). The group comprises Joe Potts (Chopped Optigan drone), Paul McCarthy (voice and guitar), Alex Stevens (live processing and synth), Tom Recchion (homemade instruments, electronics, tape, and acoustic sound), and Fredrik Nilsen (prepared organ, guitar, electronics). The recording sessions in January 2018 yielded a pair of distinctly different outcomes: one presented as-performed and another meticulously reimagined by John Wiese. Wiese’s contribution brings a unique, decomposed lens, reshaping the material into new contexts while preserving the ensemble’s spirit of collective improvisation.
Extended Organ’s dynamic embraces both instability and invention. Potts’s self-engineered Chopped Optigan, a cornerstone of the group’s sound, lays out expansive sonic textures, while McCarthy’s interventions—vocally and on guitar—are shaped in real time by Stevens’s processing and synthesis. Recchion’s singular sensibility merges surreal beauty and horror, his acoustic and electronic gestures woven seamlessly into the mix. Nilsen brings antique organ tones, prepared guitar, and Kaossilators, enriching the sessions’ palette. The resulting sound world is at various moments brilliantly comedic and haunting, maintaining a sense of playful unpredictability throughout.
Rooted in the LAFMS’s historic commitment to DIY production and radical self-expression, Extended Organ has informed generations of experimental musicians. With Ex-Org, they demonstrate the persistence of creative community and the evocative power of collaborative improvisation. Across decades, the LAFMS catalogue—including box sets and retrospectives—has documented these collective energies, and with each release, Extended Organ reaffirms both their legacy and their ongoing evolution.
