Jeff Gburek’s first release of the year isn’t quite finished yet, and to be honest, I hope it simply grows and mutates. For those of you who can appreciate minimalist piano performances in the manner of some of Arvo Pärt’s best works, this release comes highly recommended. For the best effect, consider using a good pair of headphones or a 5.1 surround sound system to hear how gorgeous the separation of sound is handled.
Month: March 2017
[Music] Verneri Pohjola – Pekka
I’m absolutely pleased to announce an upcoming album by Finnish trumpeter Verneri Pohjola, titled Pekka. For those of you whose age hovers between 45 and 70 and were card-carrying members of the magic-hat-and-bunny-slippers brigade of prog rock aficionados, you will remember the legendary bassist Pekka Pohjola, who performed with such bands as Wigwam and collaborated with Mike Oldfield, among many others.
Verneri’s album will be a tribute to his father’s memory, and judging by the quality of the track being shared at the moment, it’s quite a lovely tribute.
[Music] UZS – Ukryte Zalety Systemu – Ukryte Zalety Systemu
Ukryte Zalety Systemu is an incredible post-punk band out of Poland who maintain the spirit of the genre’s heyday in the early 1980s.
[Music/Film] Elektro Moskva
Elektro Moskva, directed by Elena Tikhonova & Dominik Spritzendorfer, shows the history of electronic music in Russia from the works of Léon Theremin to the ANS synthesizer used by such luminaries as Eduard Artemiev (famous for his soundtracks to the films of Andrei Tarkovsky) and beyond. I’m very much looking forward to seeing this when time permits.
[Literature] The Man Booker International Prize 2017: Longlist Predictions
A Little Blog of Books posts on her predictions for the only book prize that should matter.
[Music] Neil Finn – Don’t Dream It’s Over (live with strings, Auckland 2015)
Neil Finn’s band at the time, Crowded House, made Don’t Dream It’s Over, this gem of a pop song an international hit in 1986. Finn recorded this interpretation in 2015, with help from a string choir, and the man sounds the same, if not a touch better. It’s as beautiful a song now as it was then.
[Music] Inside the Heads of People Who Don’t Like Music
Divya Abhat of The Atlantic Magazine writes on something as rare as a unicorn’s rear – people who don’t like music (and why they don’t).
[Music] Girma Bèyènè & Akalé Wubé – Enkèn Yèlélèbesh
Girma Bèyènè was one of the leading lights of Ethio-jazz during the 1960s and 1970s, before the rotten Deng ruined music for decades. He moved on to Washington D.C. and continued to make music with fellow Ethiopian ex-pats. He ended up getting asked by French band Akalé Wubé to come out of retirement and sing, and this groovy cut is but one of the tracks they paired up with. Their collaboration album is available on Bandcamp.
[Music] Roberto Romero Molina – Escandinavia por Ala Delta
This must be a great week for Bandcamp. This release features a young Mexican composer called Roberto Romero Molina, whose work falls somewhere between electroacoustic music and something reminiscent of a sci-fi movie. A short, but brilliant, release.
[Music] The Orchestra of Mirrored Reflections – Dead Beat
This has to be the release of 2017, as least as far as March!
Our friends The Orchestra of Mirrored Reflections have graced our blog once before, in April of 2016 for a review of an incredible live performance in Odessa. The band return with a new, seven-track album which is as rich, dark and sumptuous as anything released by groups like the Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble, Bohren & der Club of Gore and other such acts. In fact, I’d be willing to say that the beauty of this album surpasses these stalwarts.
The album consists of smoky jazz that sits somewhere between fusion and trip-hop. The guitar playing is minimal, gentle, but totally in keeping with the darkness of the music. The drumming, however, is what makes the release for me. It is sparse, minimal, with singular beats, serving as a wonderful linchpin to the rest of the instrumentation floating above.
After such a splendid release, we wait more magic from the band
A Miscellany Of Tasteful Music 