Windy & Carl/Sadaar Bazaar - split 12"
(Earworm)
Let me start this review by saying that any new
release by Windy and Carl is a cause for celebration in the Snow
household. Every night after a new Windy and Carl release is
bought, Adrienne (my lovely wife) and I play it until
we know every nuance, twist, and turn. We really love Windy and Carl.
This new split 12" with Saddar Bazaar gives me
further reason to really love Windy and Carl. Both of the tracks
are live, lending a gritty open-sounding feeling to
the music. "Antarctica" (first featured on the ep of the
same name) really blossoms in the live context.
Sounding as if the pedals have taken over, it seems
unbelievable that real people were behind these
sounds. The music seems to waft from somewhere just
beyond cognition. The omission of any crowd noise
allows the listener to stay entranced during the break
into the next song.
"Instrumental 2," another old favorite of mine, is
instantly recognizable. This song transported me back
to Terrastock 1 where I first absorbed the sounds that
would enrich my life. My only complaint is that
"Instrumental 2" is about 100 years too short and the
bass is a bit too low in the mix. Aside from these
unimportant jabs, this release further illustrates how
great Windy and Carl are.
The flip side of the record, featuring Saddar Bazaar,
has a lot to live up to. Sitar and tablas are
prominent throughout and lead to a feeling of being
shrouded in musty tapestries. I must say that the
second song, based on a loop, is much better that the
others. Saddar Bazaar excel when in a rut. When they
try to change course within the song, it seems to pop
me out of the trance, much like being jolted
out of sleep over and over again.
I would say that Saddar Bazaar's side is best
listened to as ambient music. Much like a
tapestry, when I paid a lot of attention to the detail
I could see some holes but when I let it fade away, I
quite enjoyed it!
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