Kategorie: CD-Reviews | Genre: Psychedelic/Space Rock, Krautrock, Jazz/Jazzrock/Fusion | Heft: Jahrgang 2013, eclipsed Nr. 151 / 6-2013 | VÖ-Jahr: 2013 | Wertung: 8/10 | Label: Headspin | Autor: MaB
Cover albums often serve to shorten the waiting time between two releases with a predictable title selection. The 43-year-old Swede Goran Kajfeš pursues completely different motifs with his instrumental work "The Reason Why Vol. 1", which he recorded together with his enthusiastic Subtropic Arkestra. Instead of relying on hackneyed rock and jazz standards, the son of Croatian parents (his father was a pianist with the Zagreb Jazz Quartet) reached deep into his record collection and put together an adventurous programme that easily overcomes stylistic and cultural boundaries over a length of 49 minutes. In "Yakar Inceden Inceden" (originally by the Turkish cult musician Edip Akbayram), Kajfeš and his colleagues climb in 5/8 time through a tight mesh of wah-wah guitar, scratchy western guitar and lively flute, to which organ and brass are set as counterpoint. And as if that wasn't enough, there's a smacking pig organ solo as an extra treat, where you can even hear guitar detonations. Fans of the Swedish prog get their money's worth with "Storstad" by 70s keyboard virtuoso Bo Hansson: with Latin and fusion sounds, the lively ensemble creates a cosmopolitan metropolitan feeling in which the brass arrangements always remain beautifully transparent. Kajfeš and his team of experienced jazz musicians don't even stop at representatives of modern psychedelic rock: the lively "Desire Be, Desire Go" by the Australians Tame Impala gains even more format here by emphasizing both the taste and the poetry factor. Although "The Reason Why Vol. 1" remains close to the originals (including Cluster and Soft Machine), its obscurity makes it a grandiose voyage of discovery.
Top Track: Yakar Inceden Inceden