With all due thanks to my friend in Kazakhstan, Vyacheslav Popatov, who introduced me to the work of Marimba Plus, a Russian ethno-prog-jazz-fusion band whose work is currently blowing me away. You can hear more from the band at their Bandcamp page.
Art-Rock
[Music] Flicker Rate – Reframe EP
Can you imagine this music, dexterously played post-rock with hits at groups as disparate as Helmet and the Durutti Column, was made by a teenager? If this is Spencer Bassett’s first work, then Flicker Rate is going to be someone definitely worth following.
[Music] James Hill + Santiago Fradejas – Requiem
The Fradejas family is no stranger to this blog. Both Santiago and A.M. have had releases featured here. This one is yet another feast for the ears.
Santiago’s guitar compositions can be explosive at times, but this more subdued, but intense performance couples beautifully with the trumpeting of James Hill, a brand new name for me to explore. ECM Records, or a label of equal quality, really ought to consider re-releasing an album like this in the future.
[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/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.
[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
[Music] Cermaque – Neboj (i.e. Don’t Worry)
Indies Scope Records is one of my favorite record labels in the European continent. Their latest comes from poet, director and songwriter Jakub Čermák (doing business as Cermaque). The album is a wonderfully heady mish-mash of indie folk, alternative pop, elements of hip-hop, all held together by Čermák’s lyrical oeuvre.
Check out the album here.
[Music] Achref Chargui Trio – Tajaliyat
Afoforo Music Club is a label out of Tunis, Tunisia, specializing in a fusion of oud music, indie rock and an odd jazz hybrid. The Achref Chargui Trio boast members from Tunisia, France and Italy, and they gel together quite nicely.
[Music] John Cale – Fragments Of A Rainy Season (Reissue)
This must be John Cale day. His seminal live album, “Fragments Of A Rainy Season,” has been remastered, and apparently re-sequenced as well. Go to Domino Records’ website to read the full press release.
[Music] John Cale Announces 50th Anniversary Celebration of The Velvet Underground & Nico
It’s amazing to think that this album, which sold pitifully when it was first released, influenced almost everyone who bought it to form a band, so the legend goes. I’m very happy to hear John Cale himself had a hand in preparing this seminal release by The Velvet Underground & Nico. I simply hope the remastering is good.
A Miscellany Of Tasteful Music 