4.0 out of 5 stars
'Slow Fire' forges trailblazing music, December 28, 2011
This review is from: Slow Fire: An Electric Opera (Audio CD)
For those adventurers compelled to explore beyond the ordinary, the Paul Dresher Ensemble offers stunning new discoveries.
Composer/guitarist/keyboardist Dresher, combined with evocative vocalist Rinde Eckert and percussionist Gene Reffkin, defies classification while extracting endless superlatives. "Slow Fire" journeys through a vast variety of musical terrains: funk, hypnotic, minimalist, that will threaten, mystify and ah the listener.
Despite this diversity, Dresher has created a trademark sound evident in most of his recordings. It emanates from his layering and electronic altering techniques.
"Slow Fire" opens with the funky, toe-tapping "Sleeping With the Lights On," which observes someone wrestling with their conscience and the angst of everyday urban life.
Singer/lyricist Eckert's voice belts out anxiously, insisting on our attention, grounded by Dresher's sarcastic guitar licks. From beginning to end, Eckert grabs us with the force of his vocal presence. He doesn't so much sing as musically talk (sprechstimme).
His lyrics, concerning contemporary values, are woven into news bites, symbols, metaphors and allegories. They warn, "Don't be fooled by the decoys" and "You've got to stay alert. You get one second to grab it. You only get one shot."
"Duck Blind" sounds like an Andrew Lloyd Webber song that took a turn into the "Surrealist's Zone." It moves triumphantly into the moving "Wordless Aria." The album continues to move toward its dramatic conclusion, following our fears and disconnects in the modern world.
Dresher's mixed-breed of guitar and synthesized sounds, fronted by Eckert's theatrical vocals, doesn't fit into any obvious musical heritage. In the end, one give up trying to classify Dresher's music and simply yields to his dramatic musical language.
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