The sounds of the animals and the environmental ambience of the place infuse the opening track and the curls of fiddle appear like breath from the reindeer's mouths as the light touch of snow across the landscape obscures the steaming bodies. Sounds scatter and sprawl against a circular vibes motif and a wider selection of creatures makes an understated appearance. You feel lost in the open spaces, the Hardanger fiddle's waver surprisingly gentle, its comfort in the forbidding landscape clear.
Mr Olivetti
800 posts
The Universe Will Take Care Of You is genuinely an album that gives you something more with every listen and a must for everybody with a sense of musical adventure
This album has an exquisite touch and a warmth and generosity that only comes from familiarity and respect. From Bach To Ellington is a lovely collection that does find you hankering after the originals, just to compare, but is also a standalone delight.
...there is a lot of space in the songs, but when you concentrate the variation in instruments and sensations is really quite broad and the combinations are endlessly inventive. In the final piece, a ghost escapes offering the clearest of words so far, and the pleasant guitar and abstract percussion offer a lullaby-like backing that makes the disembodied voice even stranger.
Renowned electronicist and collaborator Matthew Herbert has joined forces with drummer and vocalist Momoko to produce a warm and inviting collection of downtempo dancefloor-affiliated tunes that highlight the latter's inventive approach to percussion and her sensual, soothing voice.
Furrow uses the trio as a means to find a home for those pieces that are less about improvisation and more about the feel of a classic jazz format. But where this selection differs and what gives it its variety is that they are inspired by many sorts of other artistic media, be they poetry, film or books.
There is care and consideration here and the pieces often feel as though there are dancers softly moving, wearing slippers so as not to disturb but fully engaged in the sinuous rhythm.... Aether II may seem cosy and soft but the little ripples that are scattered throughout give cause to reconsider.
It's Been A Long, Long Time is their first album in ten years, but that time has been well spent honing their skills live and by the sound of the virtuosity on offer here, this selection of jazzy standards have definitely been part of their repertoire.
Capturing a year's worth of live performances in a visceral overload, Brut combines hectic speed drumming with obsessive looped samples and electronic slashes to create an intense journey that gives the sensation of a dancefloor wired up to the mains.
...the way the whole range of shades is filled in is quite a feat and one that makes the album very easy to return to. As a one-off it works perfectly; a chance meeting destined to live in the memory.
...just what Bureau B is about as there has been no pressing since the original release, plus they have unearthed three previously unreleased tracks and a shorter version of the the A-side to flesh it out to album length. The title track is a mid-tempo gallop with shiny squelchy synths and the simplest of electronic drum beats.
Amongst the pastoral birdcalls and wind rustling the leaves, the bass has retreated to a liminal throb, an ancient heartbeat its low tones giving a grounding to the natural sounds that move around our heads and open our eyes. We traverse the panorama slowly, with other elements introduced as we pass dreamlike carried on a bed of gossamer synth. The rush of water soothes as local bells toll gently.
We have absolutely no idea what to expect as each new section starts, so it is best to just immerse yourself and trust to their natural flow. ... Once again, Uroboro set new standards on what we can expect from an improv gathering which feels more like a series of extended conversations between good friends
For the latest release for experimental jazz label Clonmell Jazz Social, guitarist Ted Morcaldi has convened a trio to flesh out his dreamlike concoctions. With some percussion from Joshua Blackmore and bass form Joel Humann, Ted spins twelve diverse pieces using the very different tones of electric, classical and twelve-string guitars plus various synth sounds.
It's A Love Song is the first Massaker release of new material since 1993's Koksofen and it is quite the cumbersome journey. Spread over three tracks and thirty-four minutes, the LP consists of an abstract intro of muted bells, dropped instruments and loaded silence; and then two live versions of recent composition, the titular "It's A Love Song".
Two recent albums involving Swedish pianist Mathias Landæus give good indications of the standard of his piano playing and ability to interact with other players. Both albums are by trios, with the first, Mathias with Nina de Heney on bass and Kresten Osgood on drums, giving us Dissolving Patterns; while the Landæus Trio, which features Johnny Åman on bass and Cornelia Nilsson at the drumkit, present Resilience.
God Unknown Although of Australian extraction, Daren Smallman is currently based in the UK, involved with God Unknown Records and recording as synth psych legend Dez Dare. In love with vintage synths and combining glam, post-punk and psychedelia, he’s eager to squeeze all that into a three-minute pop song and thus arrives Cheryl! Your Love Shines Down Like A Supernova’s Death, his latest missive. With all instruments and singing […]
Vocalists Malin Alander, Silje Risdal Liahagen and Synnøve Brøndbo Plassen are all acclaimed solo artists on the Norwegian music scene. Together as Hekate they breathe new life in to the folk dance form slåttetralling, which involves three-part unison singing with a touch of basic percussion ...