The
genre-bending first album from Norwegian collective Rotoscope
is a rewarding piece of jazz and electronic abstraction indeed.
Pilling up references into air-tight compositions, bringing
jazz improvisations, noise terrorism, contemporary club ethic
and articulate electronica together, Great Curves is
no less than an imposing tour de force.
Formed at the tail end of 1999 by Norwegian musician and Jaga
Jazzist member Andreas Mjøs for a live performance at
the Ultima international festival for contemporary music, Rotoscope
brings together six musicians coming from a wide range of backgrounds,
from classical to indie rock, willing to combine their creative
forces to develop a radical experimental sound. Great Curves
is the result of months of collaborative work fragmented, layered,
dissolved and reconstituted by producer Jørgen Træen.
Before reaching the comforting ethereal concluding track, the
listener will have to face countless surges of beats, noise
and incandescent instrumentation. Following Press Stop,
which opens the album with its screeching bleeps and glitch,
All That You Owned (Remix), is by far one of the most
disconcerting moments on offer here. In just two minutes, the
band scans through their entire repertoire to present a meticulous
collage of sounds, layered shredded vocals. The Bogota Sub,
Pink Soda or Watercooler all follow a similar
pattern, as soundscapes get thoroughly deconstructed and rehashed
to create astonishingly complex formations. By contrast, the
rest of the album reflects the more straightforward approach
of the live environment familiar to the band. Cooks Whip,
Music Goes On, with its omnipresent sax, is a brilliant
piece of contemporary chilled jazz, while the energetic free
jazz bonanza that is Noiserok Orkesterissa evokes the
mastery of Lionel Hampton. Things calm down toward the end,
culminating with the superb Traveller, highlighting
at last the beautiful voice of Christine Sandtrov. Simple and
stripped down, it offers a brilliant conclusion to an effervescent
record.
With Great Curves, Rotoscope assume the modernist character
of Nordic jazz with pride, smashing boundaries and destructuring
their sonic landscapes to serve their experimental inspirations
and explore new territories.
5/5 |
