Concentric - "s/t"
(Concentric Music 2003)
Concentric - "s/t"
(Concentric Music 2003)
From Aural Innovations #30 (February 2005)
Like a more jazzy version of Ozric Tentacles, with Bitches Brew era Miles Davis and classic Weather Report swirling through the mix, Concentric play with energy and enthusiasm. And while this is definitely instrumental jazz at its heart, the rock rhythms, wacky samples (and the creative way they're used), not to mention the whooshing, gurgling spacey electronic textures take it far beyond that.
From the funky space jazz of Allocate, to the freaky Fili Mi Boni Belli and the great flute solo on Mazar-e-Sharif, to Slight, a spacey ambient odyssey, there's plenty to enjoy on this album. This isn't free form or avant-garde in anyway, it's accessible and toe-tapping stuff, but with its psychedelic space freakout feel, it's also far from anything like smooth or pop jazz. Concentric, in fact, exist in a realm all their own.
Sometimes this kind of music can get so deadly serious, but Concentric sound like they are just having a ball playing their stuff, all the way through, and that good time atmosphere is infectious, making the album all that more enjoyable.
For more information you can visit the Concentric web site at: http://www.concentricmusic.com.
Email at: matt@concentricmusic.com.
Reviewed by Jeff Fitzgerald