Efterklang Live @ Von Krahl, 26.11.2008

The evening of 26th of November saw Danish contemporary chamber-rock flagship Efterklang perform at Von Krahl Theatre Bar in Tallinn, Estonia. The band who has been compared to acts diverse as Animal Collective, Björk, Arcade Fire or even the famed Estonian composer Arvo Pärt. Efterklang were warmed up by chanteuse Eva Mitreikina, who presented her recently released debut album.

First, Aivar Tõnso served as a DJ. Shortly after half past 9PM Eva Mitreikina appeared onstage, accompanying herself on the acoustic guitar. Although the accompanying instrument was weakly heard, Mitreikina's voice sounded clear. Her fragile, vulnerable and spirited performance also included a touch of childlike sweetness. Her performance was occasionally sabotaged by loud feedback from the mics.

Then the main stars of the evening appeared. Efterklang came onstage as a seven-piece and it was clear that the stage was so small it barely could contain this big lineup and all the equipment that the band used. I was ready for the possibility that perhaps the group's chamber rock sound this evening might be geared a little too heavily on the chamber side of the fence. But surprisingly the balance was pretty good: there were both chamber and rock! The band balanced the soft and loud moments very well, along with composed sections and more freewheeling jams.

Each member performed on at least two instruments. The main drummer in the band often shined with his parts on the pocket trumpet (a compact version of the conventional trumpet that nonetheless sounds no different at all) which when combined with flute or sometimes even alto sax (played by one of the guitarists) formed quite a formidable horn front-line here and there. The lead vocalist also played drums and at the more powerful sections the double-drum attack clearly strengthened the sound. The violinist occasionally also sat behind drums, allowing the main drummer to shine on his brass instrument. Occasionally all three drummers played together. Particularly memorable was the group drum solo at the end of one song which proved that drum solos do not have to be boring. Perhaps the collective interplay did the trick?

One could expect Efterklang to come across as a serious band. However, the band felt freely onstage, their stage banter was humorous and they openly communicated with the audience. The contact with the audience was impeccable. Therefore it is safe to say that with its subtle and eclectic music, shining and energetic live performance and connecting well with the audience Efterklang not only is avant-rock at its most diverting, but this band clearly rendered one of the most memorable concert performances in Estonia this year. One can't help but think how this band would sound like on a bigger stage.



Some photos of the event here.

The Dynamite Vikings - Meaning of the Party

Estonian-Danish trio The Dynamite Vikings (Jaak Sooäär on guitar, Thommy Anderrson on double bass and Karsten Mathiesen on drums) shows, that the classic power trio format still allows for expression that may not be new given the earlier jazz/avant/prog/improv-rock traditions, but is still interesting and vital. As a live band they're rather impressive. On Meaning of the Party, their third record The Vikings have managed to capture the rawer and rockier aspects of their sounds, while somewhat lacking in live energy and spontaneity. The closest it gets to rocking out is the title track, that includes, in addition to heavier-than-usual guitar, some rather Christian Vander-ish drumming from the eccentric Mathiesen. The most interesting pieces are the last two long compositions with ambient leanings, totaling 16 minutes together. For those interested in this band, I wholeheartedly recommend, in addition to the record, to go see them live.

*This review was published in Estonian in a journal called Postimees. This is the English translation

The Fall - The Unutterable

It is a bit of a curse to be prolific and have a career of longevity. Most long-standing prolific artists churning out albums left and right have records that vary in quality. Worse still, many of them might simply run out of ideas and lapse into mediocrity after the amount of classic albums that could be counted on one or two hands. It's a rare thing when 20+ years after your debut, a band is still capable of being an outstanding musical unit and also relevant. The Fall is one of those bands. On The Unutterable, released in 2000, band leader Mark E. Smith proves that with his trademark sarcastic and biting song texts as well as his unmistakably distinct powerful sing-speak snarl, he's still the underground rock personality par excellence he has always been. And the music is very good as well. There are synthesizers and other electronic embellishments on this record, that contribute to the dark, dense sonic picture of the band. Standout tracks include "Octo Realm/Ketamine Sun" that starts out with an odd slice of techno, but then transforms into a sludgy slow-burning rocker. Then there's "Dr Buck's Letter" with Smith's surreal and witty musings set to a haunting amalgam of droning guitars and menacing electronic rhythms. Aside the more experimental quirks, several tracks like "Two Librans", "Sons of Temperance" and "Hands up Billy" rock out really hard, while "Hot Runes" is one of the Fall's rockabilly-inspired numbers. With its crunchy guitar work, driving rhythms and brain-searing electronics, The Unutterable is a late-period The Fall classic that never fails to deliver a healthy dose of abrasive sonic density and it also manages to sound like a memorable musical experience.

Frank Zappa - Uncle Meat

The first three Mothers of Invention albums were really great and unique. However, on Uncle Meat, Frank Zappa takes the Mothers' sound to an entirely another level. The album retains the psychedelic sound of the previous records and there are still some song-based tunes that match the tuneful psych-pop gems on the earlier Mothers stuff, such as "Dog Breath, In the Year of the Plague" which sounds as catchy as "Who Needs the Peace Corps" from 1968's We're Only In it For Money, but with majesty that presages "Peaches En Regalia" that would appear on Hot Rats. Of other vocal material, "Sleeping In a Jar" is one of the earliest pieces written by Zappa (it was composed in 1958 along with "Pound for a Brown" as a string quartet) here presented as the main melodic block from a piece that was usually performed live as an instrumental. The arrangement is strikingly similar with Soft Machine's Volume Two: tuneful one minute ditty with colorful instrumentation and nonsensical, Dadaist lyrics. "The Air" and "Electric Aunt Jemina" are charming mock-doo-wop numbers and "Mr. Green Genes" is a lovely slice of dreamy low-key psychedelia which is also reminiscent of "Duke Of Prunes". "Cruising For Burgers" is probably the complex of all of these, very reminiscent of WOIIFTM album tracks, but with even more complex instrumentation. Another great one.

Then there are odd tracks that are partially musical jokes (attempt to play "Louie Louie" on Royal Albert Hall's pipe organ, hilarious version of "God Bless America"), spoken-word bits dealing with the microclimate of the Mothers ("Our Bizarre Relationships"), or live recordings mixed with band's history ("Ian Underwood whips it out" starts with Ian's story of his audition for the band and continues with furious sax-driven free-jazz jam in 5/4 time recorded in Copenhagen).

The main meat of Uncle Meat however, are instrumental tunes with either jazz leanings or chamber music instrumentation. "King Kong" is a jazzy monster with several parts that flows and swings effortlessly and has great instrumental interplay: ostinato/drone bass, swinging drums, great work on reeds and keyboards and guitars, that take leads after one another. Complex, yet mesmerizing. "Uncle Meat", "Dog Breath Variations" and "Pound For A Brown" on the other hand are classically influenced (a la Stravinsky) chamber rock pieces with unique instrumentation of clarinets, harpsichord, electric organ, guitar, vibes and sundry other things. The instrumentation is rich and the multi-instrumentation of talented cats like Bunk Gardner and Ian Underwood gives the album the kind of colorful and multi-layered feel which is unique even in Zappa's oeuvre.

The CD version of Uncle Meat tends to be marred with so-called "penalty tracks", which are audio excerpts from the "Uncle Meat" film and a cheesy hard rock song "Tengo Na Minchia Tanta" from 80s. Vinyl version is much recommended if such factors are annoying and subtracting from the album that I'd highly recommend for lovers of complex, yet totally far-out and weird music.

John Cale & Terry Riley - The Church of Anthrax

One of the most influential avant-rock ensembles, Velvet Underground, was very much influenced by classical minimalism, particularly by the work of La Monte Young. Terry Riley was also one of the early practitioners of repetitive avant-garde music. So it's logical that John Cale, the most gifted of the Velvets (who was sacked in 1968) would team up with Riley to make a record. When an avant-garde minimalist composer and an experimental rock musician meet to collaborate, you'd expect the results to be as drone-heavy as possible. Unlike Tony Conrad's meeting with Faust in 1972, this album is surprisingly jazz-influenced, but definitely not the kind of jazz-fusion you'd expect from Miles Davis, Weather Report or Soft Machine, although Church of Anthrax at times allows comparisons with the latter band's third album. A heavy street-smart feel carries the nine-minute title track with its rumbling bass-line and skittering drums setting a heavy basis for a melange of colorful keyboards and mesmerizing snake-charmer like soprano sax from Riley, culminating with tortured, yet subdued droning atonal guitars. "The Hall Of Mirrors In The Palace Of Versailles" follows and it appears to be a sedater affair, more in line with Terry Riley's work, the interplay between Cale's piano and Riley's sax is blissful. "The Soul of Patrick Lee" is pure John Cale track which, if Cale hadn't left the Velvets in 1968, wouldn't have sounded out of place on Velvet Underground's third, or even fourth album, the only track with vocals too. "March Ides" is possibly the most jazz-oriented piece, and quite idiosyncratic at that: pounding semi-ragtime piano sets the basis for the song and mingles with more skittering drum work, creating thus a quirky 11-minute improvisation. "The Protégé" is among the shortest tracks on this album, but it also seems the most repetitive, until the false sense of security is chased away by a burst of violent feedback that concludes Church Of Anthrax.