You put on this music, and you immediately understand that this will be special, with wind chimes, sax and guitar creating a strange, rhythmic pulse, repetitive and ambient, dark and ominous. The trio is Michael Monhart on saxophone and electronics, Tom Baker on fretless guitar, theremin and electronics, and Greg Campbell on drums, junk percussion, and French horn. As the piece evolves, it becomes increasingly difficult to recognize the instruments, as they get processed and repeated into a gloomy tapestry with the light wind chimes keeping up their spiel.
On the title track, the horror increases with a dark noise and slow percussive rumbling providing the background for equalised sax tones in clear pain. True, the electronics and latpop technology allow for lots of layers and studio possibilities, yet this is not the kind of nu jazz that we know from for instance Nils Petter Molvaer. The trio manages to create their own sound, their own vision of music, and this throughout the album. The result is a fascinating, sometimes hair-raising journey into madness and misery. Despite this, the music is very appealing, without needing to be in a state of utter depression to be able to identify with it, in a strange and undefinable way.
A strong achievement ... that could be better if even more radical in the future, without losing the vision. A challenge.
Listen and download from Bandcamp.
0 comments:
Post a Comment