DJ Shadow
In pursuance of the pure HipHop strain on his new Private Press LP, the retiring Californian beatmaster has stood back from the brink of superstardom to keep his melancholy variant on instrumental cut-ups keen. By Hua Hsu

Frederic Rzewski
From the mid-60s riot Improv of MEV via encounters with Stockhausen and Cardew to his new piano works, the radical American expat composer has been twisting new forms of protest music for four decades. By Philip Clark

Invisible Jukebox: Super_Collider
Brighton funkmasters Cristian Vogel and Jamie Lidell flex their wits trying to identify tracks by Prince, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Sly & The Family Stone, Kraftwerk, Oval and more. Tested by Peter Shapiro

Bernhard Günter
Rustling at the threshold of audibility, the microscopic soundworlds of this German artist celebrate Buddhist tranquility, Japanese notions of transience and decay, and the physicality of listening itself. By Christoph Cox

Susie Ibarra
Although a late musical developer, this drumming powerhouse has helped transform downtown New York's avant jazz scene via her feisty collaborations with Ikue Mori, Milford Graves, David S Ware and more. By David Mandl

The People Band
Plucking sounds out of the air, this altruistic English Improv collective, which included film director Mike Figgis, Terry Day, Davey Payne and others, has been forgotten since their freewheeling late 60s gatherings. By Julian Cowley

Murcof
Introspection and emotion are not words usually associated with techno, but Fernando Corona makes it work. By Ejival

Kjetil D Brandsdal
Byron Coley finds more reason to recognise Norwegian music with the guitarist and Nor Wave pusher.

The Sealed Knot
Slow and steady wins the race with this improv trio of drums, cello and harp. By Will Montgomery

Global Ear
In Blantyre, John Fenn meets Malawi's answer to The Wu-Tang Clan

Epiphanies
Philip Clark discovers something fishy about Dave Brubeck

Print Run
Stargazer: The Life, World And Films Of Andy Warhol, by Stephen Koch; Recollecting From The Past: Musical Practice And Spirit Possession On The East Coast Of Madagascar, by Ron Emoff; Avant Rock, by Bill Martin; Open The Door: The Life And Music Of Betty Carter, by William R Bauer

Ether Talk
Marcus Boon trawls through UbuWeb's massive sound art and concrete poetry archive

On Location
Freedom Of The City 2002, London Conway Hall, UK; Le Weekend, Stirling Tolbooth, UK; Aube/ Jonathan Coleclough, Osaka Fukugan Gallery, Japan; Only Connect: Sigur Rós & Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson/ Mouse On Mars/ Coil/ Plaid, London Barbican, UK; Ether Festival: Jeff Mills/ People Like Us/ Cornelius, London South Bank Centre, UK; Zeitkratzer with Lou Reed: Metal Machine Music, Berlin Haus Der Berliner Festspiele, Germany; Bios02, Athens Ime, Greece