Ash Black Bufflo, sometimes spelled Buffalo, is the professional name of Portland-based[1][2] music composer and experimental musician Jay Clarke. He composes music for feature-length films, short films, documentaries, and dance[3][4] and theater projects.[5] He is notable for scoring the music for the documentary Marwencol which won the Jury Prize at the South by Southwest film festival and received positive critical attention.[6][7] He created soundscapes for theatrical productions such as My Mind Is Like an Open Meadow, which received positive reviews in Willamette Week.[8] He performs and records with numerous Portland-area bands including Dolorean,[9][10][11][12]Holy Sons, Grails, and others.[2] Clarke landed a record deal with Knitting Factory Records, and there are plans to release his debut CD entitled Andasol using the name Ash Black Bufflo in 2011.[13]
A review in MVRemix Urban described the album Andasol as being:
... all beds and sound landscapes, surprisingly intricate, handcrafted symphonies slashed through with left-field shockers of distorted found sounds, chilling spoken word and synthed-out trips.[2]
— Caile Michelle, MVRemix Urban
Clarke explained his use of tone clusters in a theatrical production as a way to heighten dramatic suspense:
A tone cluster is any tight cluster of notes played at the exact same time ... Sometimes you use your forearm, sometimes you use sticks, anything to get as many notes down as possible.[5]
— Jay Clarke, quoted in the Portland Tribune
Discography
Andasol, Knitting Factory Records, released May 2011[14]
References
^ abBaumgarten, Mark (November 16, 2005). "Love And Distance: Miles of mainland can't stop the Standard". Willamette Week. Archived from the original on October 21, 2012. Retrieved May 13, 2011. ... keep track of the guys in the Standard. ... "Jay Clarke and Rob Oberdorfer live in Portland," Putnam says.
^ abcMichelle, Caile (May 13, 2011). "Ash Black Bufflo – Andasol album review". MVRemix Urban. Retrieved May 13, 2011. Ash Black Bufflo (or Jay Clarke) comes from Portland, Oregon
^Clarke, Kelly (March 10, 2010). "Off The Wall: A pair of local choreographers asks the Ford Building to dance". Willamette Week. Retrieved May 13, 2011. ... recently renovated building ... gains another identity: dance partner. ... The constant motion and a thrumming minimalist soundscape by Jay Clarke create an atmosphere ... of change and excitement.
^Thomas, Catherine (June 17, 2010). "Dance review: Keely McIntyre comes into her own with 'Subplot'". The Oregonian. Retrieved May 13, 2011. The best of McIntyre's choreography casts the dancers ... Jay Clarke's original score has the same effect: For much of the dance, the score is livelier than either the mood or the pacing suggests. ...
^ abChandler, John (September 28, 2004). "Play's music is more than a backdrop". Portland Tribune. Archived from the original on April 16, 2016. Retrieved May 13, 2011. Upstart Theatre ... the music of composer Jay Clarke becomes increasingly telling.
^Stevens, Dana (December 29, 2010). "Wow: My top 10 movies of 2010". Slate Magazine. Retrieved May 13, 2011. Marwencol, Jeff Malmberg. A quietly radiant debut documentary about art, imagination, addiction, and survival. ...
^Debruge, Peter (March 30, 2010). "Marwencol (Documentary)". Variety. Retrieved May 13, 2011. Vintage songs and Super 8 footage help sell the alternate reality of Marwencol, presented in mesmerizing montages throughout. ... Pic won the documentary jury prize at SXSW. ... Camera (color, DV, Super 8), Malmberg, Tom Putnam, Matt Radecki, Kevin Walsh; music, Ash Black Bufflo...
^Waterhouse, Ben (January 28, 2011). "My Mind Is Like an Open Meadow". Willamette Week. Archived from the original on May 24, 2012. Retrieved May 13, 2011. My Mind Is Like an Open Meadow -- theater -- Memory ... and the soundscape created by Ash Black Buffalo ...
^Fusilli, Jim (January 27, 2011). "Dolorean Stays 'Unfazed' on the Road to Recognition". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved May 13, 2011. The Unfazed" has an immediacy lacking on Dolorean's earlier albums ... Jay Clarke on keys ...
^Caraeff, Ezra Ace (May 13, 2011). "You Can Win: Dolorean Remains Unfazed". Portland Mercury. Retrieved May 13, 2011. When the unfazed members—Jay Clarke (keyboards), ...
^"ASHBLACKBUFFLO". ASHBLACKBUFFLO. April 1, 2010. Archived from the original on August 11, 2011. Retrieved May 13, 2011. ... A full-length album, Andasol, will be out in the fall on Knitting Factory Records.
^"Ash Black Buffloto release debut on KF Records". Knitting Factory Records website. March 25, 2011. Archived from the original on March 24, 2012. Retrieved May 13, 2011. Portland, Oregon's Ash Black Bufflo ... Andasol is due out May 24 via KF Records. T...
