Cuneiform Records 179
The Iridium Controversy is a brilliantly executed album that attempts
to achieve harmony through dissonance and carefully constructed mood. It is
flush with music of varying dispositions, but succeeds in the construction
of a unified atmosphere through an abundance of deft musicianship and bold
compositional structure.
As an instrumental album, it conveys a very deliberate message of chaos and
beauty, analogous to the world around us. As a jazz album, it is an
enticing foray into surrealism and at no point do the songs seem to exhaust
the musicians, but that the songs, with their complex arrangements, propel
the players into an invigorating, hypnotic, frenzied world no one but they
inhabit. On "The Iridium" (parts 1 and 2), the music is driven by a
marching, rolling drumbeat, with horns, piano, and an iridescent flute
leading the path down a mysterious, oscillating road flanked by crunchy
guitar, synthesizers and boisterous, yet carefully placed percussion.
There is an operatic feel to much of this album, and in reality, much of the
album feels like a modern piece of painfully orchestrated classical music,
but it is much more than that. It is post-bop bordered by Latin, rock
infused with techno, and odd-time signature beats infused with spiraling
crescendos of horn solos backed up by a crunchy, yet glamorous 1980s
electric guitar sound. It is a virtual catalogue of sound which demands
scrupulous attention and is certainly not susceptible to categorization.
This album could, in a sense, be the soundtrack to its own movie. As the
album progresses, there is a distinct feeling that you are traveling through
a singular and omnipresent story that unfolds through the brilliant
storytelling of the musicians. In fact, one musician (Michael Bierylo) is
credited for "sound design" as well as "programming," which compels one to
think about the deliberate nature of this very odd, yet captivating music.
This album is not for people compelled to listen to music with direct
rewards or a clearly-stated language or mission. It is about as abstract as
music gets these days, but does not possess the disarray and turmoil present
in free-jazz. It is compelling because it is so scrupulous and
other-worldly, yet it manages to project a sense of real freedom, which is
perhaps not as present in the music itself, but, as we might learn through
listening to it, present in the endless avenues of one's own mind.
No Comments comments associated with this post