Electric Moon meets Talea Jacta – Sabotar

Sulatron

This is a live set by Electric Moon and Portuguese band Talea Jacta, recorded at a club in Lisbon pre-pandemic on 20 September 2019, when these kind of things were a lot easier to arrange. In that respect it is a document of a freer time when music flowed without boundaries or isolation.

Let me start off by saying that this album has one of the most beautiful pieces of Komet Lulu artwork to date and will look wonderful on the vinyl version in all its glory. The music is three extended jams that are numbered parts one to three and sound vibrant, having been recorded through the mixing desk.

On “Part 1”, two guitarists, Sula Bassana and Pedro Pestana, and two drummers, Pablo Carneval and João Pais Filipe, battle it out with one bassist Komet Lulu; which was the kind of line-up that the Pink Fairies had during their reunion concert in the ’70s. The music starts with interplanetary subdued guitars before the percussion hits in with a steady beat and Neal Peart drum rolls, all held together by Lulu’s grounded bass guitar. This is a mammoth-sounding psychedelic wigout, with riffing guitars in full-throttle mode.

“Part 2” has sustained guitar and a Syd Barrett “Interstellar Overdrive”-sounding lead plucked from the cosmos, a Dan Dare, who’s there, spaceship ride to the home of the Mekons. Some desert guitar begins to break this up and gives a drift world atmosphere to proceedings. This is the sound of neon alleyways in Blade Runner; some feedback guitar begins to lift the vibe and the bass steadily interludes, giving proceedings a bottom end. When the drums finally clatter in, they do so with a roar that gives extra punch to proceedings.

“Part 3” begins with what seems to be a mournful sigh to the universe from the guitars. Echoed lead punctuates over a slight wail that again sets us into a restful tone, as percussion begins to build the pyramid of sound to make contact with Orion’s Belt. Here the drums roll around each other as cymbals crash like a soundtrack to some great ancient pagan ceremony. Now the guitars begin feeding off each other’s energy as they enter their own inner journey.

Around the twelve-minute mark, things pull back once more to a slightly calmer energy; but you can already feel this about to explode, which it does in grand style. The whole piece is a cosmic tour de force that leaves you wanting more by the time of its conclusion.

The two bands complement each other perfectly and you can see why they joined together for this electric live performance. All I can say is that thank goodness we have a document of what happened that night for all of us unlucky enough not to be there.

-Gary Parsons-