Krakatoa - Togetherness
(Etherdrag)
Some bands have perfected the art of genre hopping to the point that you stand back
and start to wonder if their speed's cut with either cocaine or sugar. Sure, there's
outstanding musical prowess there, and you can't help but admire it, but you
can also imagine the members of the band red-eyed and ready to pass out at
the end of the day. Krakatoa, on the other hand, hop genres so subtlely and
effortlessly that you'd think they were just playing one style of music, but
when someone asked you what kind of music they were playing, you would say,
"Well, that's easy really, they play—um... well, there's a little bit
of... you see... what the hell kind of music do they play, anyway?" Their
music seems so effortlessly classical and well-crafted that you can imagine
a club packed with fans of pretty much any kind of music feelin' it and
thinking to themselves, "I don't usually like this kind of music, but
this is different."
Togetherness is a fine, mainly instrumental record with nary a dull
moment. The lineup is made up of five talented multi-instrumentalists that
can handle anything. And what of this "anything" is contained within? Oh,
well, prog, R&B, post-rock, soul, jazz, folk, 50's dance-pop, country,
lounge... yeah, you're thinking, pick one and stick with it, but you won't
believe how all these things meld so seamlessly. You'll generally hear
guitar, bass, violin, and drums, with the occasional organ, clavinet, or
piano accompaniment, and the even less occasional vocal interjection (which
can be as spontaneous as a shouted couplet, or as graceful as quoting an
old-time American folk song in five part harmony).
The whole record has the energy of a jazz recording; it sounds like a live
album with no overdubs, and if it isn't, they have me fooled. Their sound is
unlike any other, and it's hard to describe why. I can't pick a moment or two
out of Togetherness that succeeds more than the rest. Press play
starting anywhere, at any second within its 50-minute length, and you'll get
a glimpse of how much you'll like the whole album. It's a strong effort and
I'm looking forward to hearing more from them.
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