Stick Men + – Midori Album Review
A resent wait for a CD copy of Stick Men + was a case in point. Being a huge King Crimson fan, the appetite was already piqued by the impressive line up of Crimson alumni that make up the band. Every day the walk to the post box was a long one until that bundle of bubble wrapped goodness arrived.
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The band, Tony Levin (the mighty Crim, Peter Gabriel and too many more to mention), Pat Mastelotto (K.C., Mr. Mister), Markus Reuter (centrozoon, Tuner) and guest David Cross (K. C., ...
Beledo – Dreamland Mechanism – Music Review
Bye Bye Blues is really driven by stickman Gary Husband as his rolling drums constantly keep the forward momentum in overdrive. It’s this friendly determination that keeps things is the service of the song and away from personal grandstanding. Marylin’s Escapade again highlights Beledo’s unreal overabundant capacity as he adds accordion to the already sumptuous mix. His fluidity is engaging as the notes seamlessly flow.
Lucilla is an exotic acoustic sidestep with Endang Ramdan’s ...
Marbin – Aggressive Hippies Album Review
Aggressive Hippies (great album title by the way) rocks like a room full of well, aggressive hippies hopped up on famer’s finest gramercy green and does it ever pin the lobes back. Six string situationist Dani Rabin does his best to herd all the audio elephants in the room together and comes up trumpets.
Danny Markovitch fills the saxtoon with lashings of drool inducing freakuencies that stitch together the aural tapestry while Greg Essig (skins) and John W. Lauter (low notes) do their ...
Sirkis/Bialas International Quartet – Come To Me Album Review
When a lyric is sung in a language foreign to the ear, it becomes more of a melodic statement than one of message and as such is easier to just let wash over you. Bialas is sublime in her native tongue and the sparse and thoughtful supportive piano notes of Harrison are divine in their simplicity and accessibility. There is no barrier here.
The rhythm section of Sirkis and Bettison are also a marvel of unison thought process and give the music just the right nudge when needed. The songs ...
Steven Wilson – Hand. Cannot. Erase. Music Review
In the way that watching an effective non-fiction film makes you want to follow the viewing with a liberal amount of internet investigation, Wilson’s ode to the life and times of Joyce Carol Vincent has the same effect. It’s an emotional album about a story that underlines the fact that even with all the social media and Internet connections in today’s society, people fall between the cracks, intentional or otherwise.
Vincent was by all accounts, a vibrant and popular young lady ...
Mark Wingfield – Proof Of Light Album Review
His superb phrasing is just the start. It’s his choices in tone and the way his notes spill into unusual areas that make the biggest impression. They just coat your ear holes with gooey goodness.
Mark’s liquid tone is matched by his introduction of notes in a fashion that is most luxurious; they seep out of your speakers in a surprisingly organic way, especially considering how processed they actually are. This is technology used to paint a most vivid picture of something naturalis...
Sleater-Kinney – No Cities to Love Album Review
That album, The Woods saw the band arrive at a point that veered close to a classic rock feel with its dense sound and almost prog nature. After that statement, band members Corin Tucker, Carrie Brownstein and Janet Weiss put the group on indefinite hiatus and then went on to pursue different individual and outside band projects and who can blame them? Being in a band can become a grind and steer you into a lifestyle that has more similarities than differences and it’s unique life ...
Yagull – Kai Album Review
Taking away the often times bombastic soundscape that heavy use of outboard gear allows gives band mainstays Sasha Markovic and Kana Kamitsubo the opportunity to create a world of both introspection and intimate appeal. These are songs that invite you to get inside them, like the feeling of wrapping yourself up in a warm blanket on a cold winter’s night.
The band’s duo core is supplemented by a plethora of guests that further expand the scope of the proceedings. Dewa Budjana and ...
Moraine – Groundswell Album Review
Dennis Rea and the mob that make up the group Moraine have such an overabundance of music skills, it is more of a matter of taking ideas out of the mix than showcasing all the prodigious amounts of musical proficiency present. This approach gives the music at hand a razor sharp focus. The instrumental pallet this time includes bass, drums, guitars, sax, flute, violin and that old standby the Mellotron.
The moods on Groundswell are forever changing and the band dips into some very ...
Tohpati Ethnomission – Save The Planet Album Review
With a deep understanding of both his local musical roots as well as the global pool of exploration and utilizing a collection of exotic instrumentation, the 11 songs here constantly surprise and captivate the listener. Calling it jazz-rock-fusion severely understates the synthesis of styles here.
The guitar is often the lead instrument and its effect on the overall sound is great but it’s the percussive elements underpinning the songs that give the tracks so much impact. With the ...
