Arthur Russell

[ed miliband]

One of the many very talented individuals to die of AIDS in the early 90s, Russell was a classically trained cellist who experimented with disco, house, folk and minimalism, often all at once. He was a key figure on the no-wave / post-punk scene, his music was played in some of the most famous disco venues (even Studio 54), and he had records released on Philip Glass' record label - few musicians manage to bridge gaps like that, but I think it's just testament to his talent.

Here's a little selection of his music:

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Oh yeah, and here's a trailer for a documentary recently released about him:

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