by Joslyn Layne Formed in 1989, the Dutch rock band Blast plays both scored and improvised music. Most often a quartet, Blast incorporates rock and elements of the modern 20th century such as atonal counterpoint and noise. The group has played new music venues and festivals such as M.I.M.I. and F.I.M.A.V. since before their first release in 1992 (which was self-released; theyve been on Cuneiform ever since). In 1998, Blast began touring as an octet, and moved their experimental rock music further in modern classical directions by increasing the complexity of their instrumentation and composition.