REVIEW: Pressure Drop, Elusive (WORK)
- Krisjanis Gale
This Is Art. Outspoken, blatantly honest creativity. Aching, piercing beauty. The sheer, bleeding edge of The New Jazz. Whole orchestras of sound skillfully controlled by two mere men, quite intent on painstakingly serving up dark and jazzy illbient backgrounds truly befitting a barrage of spoken word, driven to evolve the human condition beyond its current state of capitalist dogma. This is Pressure Drop.
The men in total control of soul are The Blood Brothers Justin Langlands and Dave Henley. The talented possessors of satin vocal cords are Anita Jarrett, Constantine Wier, and Martin Fishley. Joining them, with a passionate love of music, are Scott Garland on saxophone and flute, Duncan McKay on trumpet, Godhead on harmonica and clarinet, and Chris Taylor on drums. All of them have somehow managed to get it together and produce one of the most beautiful albums of the decade, perhaps even the century, seamlessly blending old and new, and succeeding in creating something utterly timeless.
Imagine attending an open mic poetry session. Imagine an army of musicians, arriving one by one, each sitting down, then playing along with a perfect understanding of the poetic atmophere, each contributing their own views on it, with music, not words. Imagine two DJ's in the background, giving life to it all with deeply moving breakbeat, droning basslines, soaring orchestras, and an arsenal of effects. Imagine that each element complements another in a way only true musicians can comprehend. Imagine yourself listening to it all, finding yourself no longer confined to a chair, but free to move through that vast expanse of your own mind, experiencing both intense joy and pain; not only swimming through the murky depths of distant memory, discovering lost emotional treasure, but also flying high above your own past, seeing your future unfold on the horizon. Now imagine that this does not even begin to describe the mind expanding process of listening to this album.
When you see Elusive on record store shelves, please disregard where it may have been classified, put aside any and all prejudice you may have against "electronica" because it is so much more than just that. If you love music, if you love art, or if you love life itself, on this fair and endangered blue planet, you must give this album a listen. It will haunt you until the end of your days.
