JD Pinkus (Butthole Surfers) & Tall Tall Trees - 'Ponder Machine' LP + "Can't C#" Video Exclusive for 6/30 via Shimmy-Disc

JD Pinkus & Tall Tall Trees - Ponder Machine LP Due June 30 via Shimmy-Disc

Photo Credit: Sandlin Gaither PRE-SAVE: JD Pinkus & Tall Tall Trees - Ponder Machine LP Pre-Save LISTEN/WATCH & SHARE: JD Pinkus & Tall Tall Trees - "Fungal Mountain Breakdown" Stream / YouTube Shimmy-Disc has announced the forthcoming release of a brand new record, Ponder Machine, the heady new concoction from banjo virtuosos JD Pinkus (Butthole Surfers) & Tall Tall Trees (Mike Savino), due June 30. The new LP — which contains the spirit of high mountain bluegrass, laden with profound and somewhat sinister depth — is introduced with the following: Take a Deep Dive into their secluded mountain stream, but beware the rapids and hang tight to your tube! That heretic howl is not in your imagination, and yes, the ancient trees may shift slightly as you rocket past, just enough to offer a glowing glimpse into the strange new world  illuminated by a pair of passionate, psychedelic banjo masters. If a trembling string fails to find its traditional fret, the network of fungi beneath your feet may be alerted by the wanton sounds of SpaceGrass (or is it 'SlowGrass' ?) shifting magnetically in the cosmic blue-lit forest. Watch out for boiling soils beneath your feet. Hold tight in that brainy space between your ears - better just lay back and enjoy the long slow slide. Ponder Machine - Release Bio: If you've been wondering what it might sound like when two alt-banjo giants join hands & strings and sell their souls at the crossroads, Ponder Machine (due June 30, 2023 via Shimmy-Disc) is an essential listening experience. In August of 2022, Kramer parachuted into Asheville, North Carolina to record a mysterious LP of collaborative banjo studies by JD Pinkus & Tall Tall Trees. Pinkus is best known as the bassist who replaced Kramer following his exit from the Butthole Surfers (and his years with The Melvins), and Joyful Noise Recordings artist Tall Tall Trees (aka Mike Savino) is a stunningly talented multi-instrumentalist, known for his work with Kishi Bashi, along with his pioneering excursions into the world of his Banjotron 5000. Within hours of Kramer's arrival, things got entirely out of hand (in exactly the manner he had hoped), and the results are sure to rewrite the way people see, hear and THINK about the banjo. Ponder Machine proves in a thousand ways that the possibilities are limitless, and the extra 30 minutes of music you get when you buy the Cassette version (or download the digital-only tracks) just hammers the point home. There is method to their madness. Listen closely and you will hear it. Think John Cage meets Bela Fleck meets Brian Eno. The banjo has never been chewed up and spit out so lovingly. JD Pinkus brought his mushrooms and effects pedals. Mike Savino brought his sourdough and his psychedelic street-smarts. Sweet dreams, y'all. On the recording of the LP, Savino wrote: "The unlikely-hood of two traveling one man psychedelic banjo bands living on the same hill in Asheville, North Carolina is well, possibly less rare than in other places, but a definitely a good start to a one-liner.  Having JD Pinkus and Kramer in my studio for 10 days during a record setting August heatwave has permanently altered my consciousness. We began recording with the semblance of a plan and soon abandoned that plan to chase rabbits. I honestly cannot remember recording much of this music, not due to substance or faulty memory, but because I completely let go. I became a spectator. The entire record feels like a collective fever dream and I will cherish the time we spent making it for a long long time. I no longer want to think about music, I just want to do it. I don’t even remember." Ponder Machine - TRACKLISTING: 01. Sourdough Rag 02. Building Fires 03. High on the Mountain 04. Mad County 05. Afterlifer 06. Can’t C# 07. E.Y.’s Demise 08. Ponder Machine  09. Zeno Raises The Dead 10. Fungal Mountain Breakdown 11. Building More Fires *Cassette B-Side / Digital Exclusive* 12. E.Y.’s Continuous Demise *Cassette B-Side / Digital Exclusive* 13. Zeno Rises Again *Cassette B-Side / Digital Exclusive* Ponder Machine - CREDITS: All Instruments & Voices: JD Pinkus & Mike Savino All Songs © JD Pinkus & Mike Savino Fungus: JD Pinkus Sourdough: Mike Savino Photography: Kramer Layout & Design: Ryan Hover Produced by Kramer at Galley Tapes, Asheville N.C./USA (August, 2022) Mixed & Mastered by Kramer at Noise Miami (September, 2022) JD Pinkus Bio: Jeff 'JD' Pinkus is an American bassist best known for his work with American punk band Butthole Surfers from 1985 to 1994 and since the 2009 reunion. In 1990, he and Butthole Surfers' lead vocalist Gibby Haynes released Digital Dump, the only album from their psychedelic house music side project The Jackofficers. Upon leaving Butthole Surfers, Pinkus worked full-time with the Austin trio Daddy Longhead, which he had assembled during his waning months in the band, and which included longtime Atlanta associate Jimbo Young on guitar and Rey Washam on drums. Daddy Longhead retired after 10 years, leaving Pinkus free to explore other projects including Skinny Leonard and Areola 51. Pinkus played with Helios Creed on his albums NUGG: The Transport [1996] and Activated Condition [1998], and has also collaborated with Bad Livers frontman Danny Barnes several times in a live setting. JD Pinkus then co-founded the band Honky who went on to record five albums and are still currently active. ​Pinkus also performs with Pure Luck, who released a self-titled release in 2017 on Heavy Feather Records. He leaves his bass to play Banjo and Guitar in this project. On their 30th anniversary tour in 2013, Pinkus joined the Melvins in place of Jared Warren (on paternity leave), in addition to performing with the opening band, Honky. He subsequently joined the Melvins full-time, touring with them in 2014 in support of the album Hold It In, which also featured Butthole Surfers founder Paul Leary, and again in 2015. He also plays on the song "Captain Come Down" which was first released in 2015 on Chaos as Usual, a split release with Le Butcherettes, and later included on the 2016 album Basses Loaded. In 2018, JD Pinkus released a solo album, Keep on the Grass, on cassette tape via Danny Barnes' Minner Bucket Records and later, on vinyl and Compact Disc through Heavy Feather Records. It was recorded entirely on banjo and features a rendition of the song "Bride of Crankenstein" from the Melvins album Hold It In. The Keep on the Grass album release show was with Sleep in San Pedro on September 15th 2018. Later, the Melvins announced that Pinkus would be joining them, alongside current bassist Steven McDonald (Redd Kross), on their next album and subsequent tour. Released on April 20, 2018, the aptly titled Pinkus Abortion Technician features both bass players and four songs written or co-written by Pinkus. In May of 2021, JD Pinkus and Daddy Longhead released another album titled Twinkle, which was originally recorded but not distributed in 1998.  Last year, JD Pinkus is released his second solo “space grass” banjo album titled Fungus Shui. The album was written, recorded, and mixed by Pinkus himself at Plastic Cannon Studio in Asheville, North Carolina. The album was mastered by Kramer. Fungus Shui was released on Shimmy-Disc on August 20th 2021. JD PINKUS LINKS Facebook | Website | SoundCloud | Bandcamp | Instagram