Customer Reviews

Alternesia

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Jon Iverson takes you on a seeming journey through space via Indonesia. Ambient electronic music with an eastern flair!

The song for which the album is entitled, Alternesia, is a surprisingly peppy, yet soothing melody. It is one of those hypnotic rhythms that makes you move, but almost puts you to sleep.

Purcussion is featured on this album. It offers a cornucopia of metal drums, but don't think about Jamaica. There is a definite, calmer difference. Bamboo adds a pleasing effect.

The sounds of these drums are conveying a message. They seem to say that all is well. Tap your foot! Groove ! Or take a nap!

Play this CD when you are trying to shed the stress of the day. This seems to offer an ALTERnative that will make you suffer a temporary bout of amNESIA. When you listen to ALTERNESIA, by Jon Iverson, instead of worrying, you'll forget to care!

While drummers may be a dime a dozen, true percussionists are a rare breed indeed. It takes someone of a Mickey Hart or Stewart Copeland calibre to elevate the practice of hitting things to the level of art; seems we can add the name Jon Iverson to that list.

"Alternesia" is rooted in the music of Bali; the two major instruments represented here are bells and, of course, percussion. Oftentimes, the difficulty in percussive music is the delicate balance between rhythm and some semblence of melody; here, that balance is literally perfect throughout. The rhythms are incessant, but in a meditative, soothing way, and always complemented perfectly by the sounds of the bells. Hard to imagine much melody coming from such a "collaboration," but perhaps that in a nutshell is what makes this such a striking release. The making of music in areas where few can achieve brilliance is a rare and spectacular event.

I'd easily rate this as among the finest percussive and/or World Beat albums I've had the pleasure of hearing. Add to that the album's strength as a companion piece to meditation or relaxation and you have an absolute winner.

Postscript - Those who enjoy this may wish to check out an album called "Waterbase" by Gina Balducci or some of the more percussive works of Mickey Hart. Praying for a re-issue of Stewart Copeland's "The Rhythmatist" isn't a bad idea, either...