with the recent talk of this album, thought i'd post up my review from
motion ... hope you don't mind. there's sounds accompanying the review at
http://motion.state51.co.uk/reviews/417.html so you can have a listen too
... it's very very good, and sadly getting ignored by the dumb media over
here (uk).
cheers,
dan.
The Cinematic Orchestra
Motion
Ninja Tune
The Cinematic Orchestra's 'Motion' (no relation) is a lovingly-crafted
homage to the 60s jazz film soundtrack, refracted through the lens of
contemporary sample culture. Though collaborative, this is definitely J
Swinscoe's project, presenting supporting players with sampled loops to
improvise around, recording and reconstructing the results. Whilst lesser
musicians would end up with a soulless mess, Swinscoe's finesse for
arrangement ensures remarkable coherence, 'live' without ever feeling the
need to pretend that its not sampled. You can hear the process emerging -
in the clipped decay of cymbal crashes, delayed-drenched vocal samples, Gil
Evans-like strings, a distant telephone used as percussion on at least
three tracks, echoing Morricone's Once Upon A Time In America - but these
lipstick traces of technology are as seamlessly integrated into the sound
as any other instrument. Never hidden, though never obvious. Vocals are
employed smartly throughout, abstract rather than narrative, indiscernible
lyrically, yet stylistically hugely evocative, effortlessly conjuring jazz
diva. Indeed, instruments are used more for their sound than for their
melodic potential - timbre drawn from early 60s soul jazz, mid 60s free
jazz, early 70s jazz funk - providing an insight into Swinscoe's primary
influences. As David Toop notes in Exotica, for "film composers such as
John Barry and Ennio Morricone, the attraction of sensual depths of sound
... outweights any populist urges to tether listeners in the shallows of
melody." It's a little previous to add Swinscoe to this illustrious
company, but he is cleverly combining this favoured MO of film composers
with sample-oriented music's focus on rhythm and texture as opposed to
melody. Much of the beauty of this music is in texture: Swinscoe clearly
appreciates the delicate shimmer of Bill Evans' piano or Gary Burton's
vibes, Buddy Rich's fizzing drum sound, how Ray Brown's warm booming bass
was fundamental to 60s jazz. The drums in particular are near-perfect,
managing to capture the sound of a rampaging Elvin Jones, yet looping the
playing into contemporary angular loops. The sampled/live players are Tom
Chant, rendering dancing Shorteresque soprano sax, joined by Jamie Coleman
(tpt/flg), Phil France (bs), T. Daniel Howard (ds), Saidi Kanba (perc), and
Alex James (ac/el p). There are planned live dates, including a gig at The
Directors Guild Lifetime Achievement Award ceremony for Stanley Kubrick -
perhaps an indication of just how good this reconstruction of 60s jazz
soundtrack is. 'Motion' is occasionally rather too smoothly constructed,
caught in evoking a genre, rather than exploring underlying intentions. It
nods towards mid-60s free jazz, particularly on 'Bluebirds', without ever
touching the heights of Coltrane's Ascension - an unreasonable expectation
of course, but there are several camps ploughing this furrow at the moment,
and arguably Fridge/Four Tet, Squarepusher and Ponga are pushing the scene
forward by not getting caught in simulacra. Yet it would be churlish to
argue that this is not an innovative, exciting, exquisitely crafted yet
soulful album, as it's all of these things. This fine album is probably
just too jazz for the ignorant, impotent, rock-obsessed mainstream music
press, but that's their loss. One of the albums of the year fer sure. Great
title too ;)
---+ dan hill [state51]
---+ new reviews on motion [26.9.99]:
< paul panhuysen | ellen fullman | pilote | keb darge's legendary deep funk
vol.3 | osmosis >
http://motion.state51.co.uk/ +---