A Series Of Indecipherable Glyphs
New Focus, 2022
9/10
Listen to A Series Of Indecipherable Glyphs
The Pennsylvania outfit NakedEye Ensemble bring us a collection of chamber works that are very much rooted in rock’n’roll ideas, where searing guitars and wild percussion often populate the dynamic pieces.
The first 10 tracks belong to Nick Didkovsky’s “Amalia’s Secret”, as the dreamy clarinet, acrobatic drumming and spirited electric guitar make for an avant-garde version of rock that’s fascinating, and “Sinister Footwear II”, by Frank Zappa, follows with soulful sax, airy flute and firm keys complementing the dense bass and electric guitar in often groove friendly and rhythmic ways.
In the middle, Rusty Banks’ “Dum Spectas Fugio” is quite hypnotic and abstract in a mechanical sort of fashion, while “Less Is More” uses mesmerizing keys and subtle percussion for the intimate Molly Joyce composition that does build into an emotive landscape.
Richard Belcastro’s “Nepetalactone” exits the listen, and it’s a cautious mix of winds, brass and strings that abruptly bursts into a sonically charged rock’n’roll adventure before retreating to calm again. Interestingly enough, this final track is a musical portrait of the effects of catnip on felines.
Call them avant-rock, new classical, experimental electro-acoustic or a combination of all 3, there are few outfits out there as daring or accomplished as NakedEye Ensemble, and this exceptional body of work further solidifies them as the best of the best in area of chamber music.
Travels well with: Peter Gilbert- Burned Into The Orange; Douglas Boyce- The Hunt By Night