Sean Malone- RIP

[Sean]

Stunned to hear the news of his passing. Saw it via Mike Portnoy's FB message. Oddly, in a small world kind of way, my old drummer, who ironically is named Shawn Malone, was just thinking of him (they grew up together) and said Sean met a mutual friend and few months ago and gave him a bunch of his gear to sell.... And that was the first time they had heard from him in a long time.

Portnoy's post- "Totally shocked and sad to hear of Sean Malone’s passing...he was a tremendous bass and stick player that I had the pleasure of working with many times through the years. He was my Geddy in Cygnus & The Sea Monsters, he played on the 1st OSI album w me and we last toured together in 2014 when he was playing Bass in John Wesley’s band opening for Flying Colors. This is just another shocking loss in 2020...sadly the same year we also lost Sean Reinert, his rhythm section partner in Cynic. "

Such a shame. He wasn't that old. He was a PE member for many years too.

[Udi Koomran]

aged 50 wow what a loss
RIP

[Scrotum Scissor]

Reinert and Malone in the same year? Both 49-50? That's actually pretty horrible!

I guess this leaves Masvidal as the sole surviving original Cynic. I hope he keeps things going, although I doubt they'll ever succeed at being quite the same thing.

[Nashorn]

That is very sad. He was much too young with just 50 years.

[NogbadTheBad]

Such a shocking loss, he's younger than a lot of members here, the Cynic album Focus is excellent, I really like the two Gordian Knot albums. Such a wonderful bassist.

[bondegezou]

A shock at such a young age. The two Gordian Knot albums are amazing and far too little known.

Henry

[proggy_jazzer]

A shock at such a young age. The two Gordian Knot albums are amazing and far too little known.

Listening to the first one now - indeed amazing. This sadly escaped my attention until today. 50 is so young. RIP

[Boceephus]

So sad! His solo album, Cortlandt, was an eye opener for me, then Gordian Knot. Too young to pass. RIP


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[Sturgeon's Lawyer]

Ah, man. What a damn shame. I pray for his loved ones.

[spellbound]

Sorry to hear that. Rest in peace, Sean Malone.

[arturs]

So sad! His solo album, Cortlandt, was an eye opener for me, then Gordian Knot. Too young to pass. RIP

Same for me. I just rediscovered Cortlandt earlier this year after it had languished in a mover's box for 15 years. "Cinematic" in the best sense of the word.

Listening to the absolutely beautiful "Grace" from GN's Emergent right now. RIP.

EDIT: that should be "GK" of course...

[SteveSly]

Very sad. I remember meeting him at NEARfest when he did his solo set on Chapman Stick. He seemed like a very nice guy. The first OSI album is still one of my favorites.

[Kcrimso]

Very sad indeed. Emergent by Gordian Knot is a wonderful album.

[mozo-pg]

I definitely admire Sean's work. This is way too early to pass this mortal coil.

[Boceephus]

Cause still not announced? I’ve lost 3 friends at 50 due pancreatic cancer. All within months of each other. It’s way too young an age to pass.


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[Paulrus]

Yikes, far too talented a musician to go so soon. RIP and condolences to his friends and family.

[LASERCD]

[this is a crosspost from my FB page]

I am deeply saddened to read the reports of the passing of Sean Malone.

In 1996 I decided to spin off a metal oriented label which ultimately became known as Sensory Records. I was contacted by Sean Malone to see if I had interest in an unnamed project he was working on. I was familiar with Sean’s work with Cynic and the names associated with the project were intriguing. The names changed as the project developed, ultimately culminating in the first Gordian Knot album. This was a foundational release for Sensory. Between the time of the first Gordian Knot album and the follow up, 2003’s Emergent, we brainstormed on a number of potential projects but they didn’t materialize for various reasons. Emergent was another successful release which saw Sean bringing on board two of his musical heroes Bill Bruford and Steve Hackett. I know that was a thrill for him. A few years later at Sean’s request we re-released his solo debut album Cortlandt.

Sean was more than a composer and musician with prodigious abilities. He had a brilliant mind. His job as an academic is a testament to this. Sean was deeply interested in the work of Glenn Gould, writing papers and presenting lectures on various aspects of Gould’s career.

His devotion to teaching curtailed his recording and touring output. When Cynic reformed we were graced with another outstanding example of his amazing abilities. He was slowly working on a third Gordian Knot album but his teaching demands cut into his time and it never came to fruition. I can only imagine what might have been.

I was honored to see him perform in the studio during the Gordian Knot sessions and on stage – solo and with Cynic. He was a phenomenal bass player and his work with the Chapman Stick simply bordered on wizardry - a master at his craft.

I wish he was more prolific but what he left us with will continue to resonate for years to come.

Rest in peace my friend.

[AdventAlan]

Hi,

Very sad news indeed. Sean was an excellent Stick player and had an extremely strong reputation and following in the Stick community. I wish I'd had a chance to see him play live and at least say hello as well.

Best wishes,


Alan

[calyx]

Thanks, Ken, for the touching tribute. Without your efforts, Sean may not have crossed over to some of us prog (non-metal) heads. The first Gordian Knot album in particular I found very strong and unique - a classy package in every way.

[simon moon]

Very sad indeed...

The guy had some major talent and chops.

And from everything I read about him, was an extremely great person.

[calyx]

My interview with Sean from February 1999 (only ever published in French) -

Q : Could you please try to introduce yourself to readers with a background in mostly progressive rock ? The bio mentions your activities with the 'avant-garde metal' band Cynic; I must confess I have no knowledge of that band's music. So, in short, did your previous work have anything in common with the music of this new project, which I would definitely classify as progressive rock ?

SM : The music of Cynic is much heavier and is a combination of progressive metal and thrash I suppose. It's always been hard to classify the group. Cynic is considered a technical band, and the music on Gordian Knot is a reflection of that, though the arrangements are not as involved as those on the Cynic CD. I am fond of what we did in Cynic, but this new CD is more melodic I think, which is important to a piece of music in my opinion.

Q : Unlike the 80s, the 90s have witnessed a lot of interactivity between the prog and metal scenes, the most significant of which is probably the success of Dream Theater. Do you think the concept of progressive rock, as a rock-based music offering wider opportunities for instrumentalists to express themselves, is become appealing again to rock musicians ? Or has it never ceased to be ?

SM : I don't think it has ever ceased to be. In fact, the most typical "conversion" I see is of metal players getting interested in jazz. A characteristic of metal players, or anyone who plays an extreme type of music, is that in your own field you reach an inevitable end. We see that over and over again with imitative metal and rock bands. It seems progressive rock fans enjoy the challenges of listening to a type of music that is not apprehendible on the first few listenings. It requires thought on the part of the listener, and it is those thoughtful listeners who create a forum for musicians like myself to make records. The music I enjoy writing is only listened to by a small group of people, but I prefer that kind of intimate audience. But it goes without saying that I haven't the slightest idea how to make my music more commercially viable, so I'm free of worrying about having to write a hit song on every record.

Q : As I said, I find Gordian Knot to be a particularly groundbreaking album. And the most obvious quality is the production and general sound. There is definitely a modernistic, possibly even futuristic, quality to the whole atmosphere of the album. And this is also true of the harmonic vocabulary used, which is far ahead of the usual major/minor chords stuff. Did you consciously set yourself the challenge of creating music for the next century (or millenium), or to say it less pompously, music for the future ?

SM : I can't say that I am consciously aware of the future, as much as I am interested in not duplicating the past. We are only a sum of our influences, but it's the combination of those influences that is unique to each person. My background is in jazz, and I continue to play standards as a means of becoming a better improvisor. In fact, the forms of the songs, for the most part on GK, are influenced by that jazz structure; there is a motif and then improvisation based on certain harmonies. I tried to strike a balance between improvisation and composition, to retain a certain "heaviness" to the music, and maintain enough melodic content. My academic background in composition helps me tremendously - I'm trying to capture my favorite elements of jazz and progressive rock in form and improvisation in the context of instrumental progressive rock. For instance, I am currently studying with the composer Robert Kyr who is a very accomplished composer and improvisor. However, he has no background in the music that I write, but what he teaches (and what we learn from all music) that there is a balance between form and function. I think of myself as a composer whose music has the flavor of progressive rock or jazz, instead of a "progressive rocker" who happens to compose.

Q : Another successful aspect of the album is, for me, the sounds of the instruments themselves. I usually have reservations with modern production work as it has tended to lose the "warmth" typical of analog sounds. While using state-of-the-art instrumentation and effects, Gordian Knot has, I find, managed to find the digital counterpart of the old analog sounds, in terms of presence, warmth and, to say it plainly, beauty. Are you particularly interested in that aspect of the production, and do you agree with the analog/digital comparison ?

SM : I am very interested in that aspect of production. My objective with any recording is to create an environment in which all of the sounds seem to naturally co-exist. That is a difficult task when you are dealing with acoustic and electric instruments. Again, getting back to the jazz concept, when you listen to older recordings, they are usually just one or two microphones recording the ensemble - the recording itself is a document of the performance. I think that too often, progressive musicians (and other as well) seem to need the actual recording to become the music. There is a dependence on technology to compensate for lack of planning on the part of the musician. Now, there are many circumstances where that can be a benefit, and it would be difficult to describe each circumstance. For the most part I am interested in creating a kind of organic whole, and achieving that in part is due to letting the sounds of the instruments speak for themselves - I concentrate on the notes, then the instruments that play them, the rest falls into place. Over-production will take the life out of any recording.

Q : Maybe it's just because of the instruments used, but I do observe similarities, in terms of both musical content and overall sound, between Gordian Knot and 1981-84 era King Crimson. The cleanness, absolute clarity, discipline of the playing, composition and arrangements have a lot in common. Do you acknowledge this influence ? And by the way, how have youcome to collaborate with Trey Gunn ?

SM : King Crimson was at one time a very large influence on me - I still listen to the band a lot, though I prefer the 80's period recordings. There are a few sections on GK that are clearly a reference to that band, for instance the middle section of Redemption's Way with the interlocking Stick and Warr Guitar parts. It's a great texture and I wanted to employ it without it seeming too derivative. But at the same time, I think since I used Stick so much on this record, it's going to draw that comparison even though the majority of the music doesn't sound much like Crimson. When someone sees "Stick", they listen to it and try to find the similarities to Crimson. Try listening to it as music first, then I think you will see that there is only a hint of the influence. Trey played on my first solo CD, Cortlandt, and I asked him to coproduce this new record with me as well as play on it. I enjoyed his work with David Sylvian and his ideas regarding production. We first met only through email and sending recordings back and forth together over a period of six months or so, then I asked him to produce the GK CD and he came to Florida and we mixed it together.

[calyx]

(cont'd)

Q : To what extent is Gordian Knot a solo project with guests, or a band (noting that John Myung has 'special guest' status whereas the others seem to be considered more as 'fulltime' members of the 'project' ? Are there any plans for gigs or further collaboration ?

SM : This record is primarily another solo CD for me, but my conception of this project was to have more of a group identity to it. People have an easier time identifying with it this way instead of another "Sean Malone" CD. Each member contributed their parts within a framework that I described to them. I wanted to capture the personality of each player but I also wanted it to sound whole and organic, not just a bunch of people taking solos over me and Sean. So that's how it has a group ethic to me. John Myung was considered a guest because he played on only two songs. I am tired of CD's where you see someone's name featured as a member and it turns out they played a few notes on one song. So I wanted to present the lineup honestly. In addition, I wanted to bring together some players that haven't before worked together. And for the next CD, the same will be true. There will be a core "Band" and then some guests - but I don't want to go overboard and create some mismatched sounding record. I think it's exciting to hear these players together in an environment that is different than there regular bands, but still put their own personal stamp on the recording.

There are plans for GKII, and I am writing the new material currently. There are no plans for concerts, but it's not impossible for some to happen. I am just hoping to cultivate some recordings in this style. It's a lot of fun, and I feel very lucky that I get to do it.

Q: How did you get in touch with Ken Golden of Sensory/Laser's Edge ? Ever since you signed with him last year, Ken has been talking to me of this CD as his most important project ever. Can you tell us more about your collaboration and your artistic and commercial aims with this album ?

SM: I was referred to Ken Golden by Asgeir Mickelson, the drummer for the Norwegian band Spiral Architect. I told him my plans, but I had no demos for him. He took a chance with me, and I took a chance with him. I remember daily phone calls from him asking "what does it sound like?" - I know that he was really worried until he finally heard some rough mixes. The truth is, I didn't really know exactly what it would sound like, but I had a pretty good idea.

My commercial aims are, of course, to sell some records. I realize that this project doesn't have tremendous commercial appeal, but if you can keep costs low (and we did this CD rather cheaply) then more and more distributors become interested and will offer bigger advances for a new CD. Creating a CD like this is a labor of love, and is tremendously difficult when there isn't much money to deal with. I've been excited about the response to the CD and it seems to be catching on to more people than I thought would actually be aware of it. I hope that those same people are eager to hear a new CD.

[NogbadTheBad]

Very nice posts Ken & Aymeric. Good stuff.

[interbellum]

Same for me. I just rediscovered Cortlandt earlier this year after it had languished in a mover's box for 15 years. "Cinematic" in the best sense of the word.

Listening to the absolutely beautiful "Grace" from GN's Emergent right now. RIP.

EDIT: that should be "GK" of course...

There's a live version of Grace on the NEARfest Tribute album After The Storm.

Sad news. Although I'm not that much into the harder edges of bands like Cynic and Aghora, Sean's playing made it worth listening to for me. Gordian Knot and his solo-album (I've got two versions b.t.w., the original AudioImage Records-version and the rerelease on Free Electric Sound/The Laser's Edge) are more my kind of style.
I've also got the first (?) solo-album by John Wesley on which Sean performs.

Here's a live-performance of Cygnus And The Sea Monsters, featuring Sean, Paul Gilbert, Mike Portnoy and Jason McMaster (available on the DVD The Drum Pad's 50 Anniversary Show):

[timehat]

Big loss for me, so was Sean Reinert. Cynic was my absolute favorite band for a period of time in my teenage years, and their influence still looms in my music, even as I get further and further away from metal in my own work. Fretless bass is probably my favorite instrument, and Sean Malone was the person who brought it to my attention.