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MUSIC Album reviews

Latest releases from Nik Bartsch, Van Morrison and TEKE::TEKE

Nik Bartsch
Entendre
(ECM)
★★★★

SWISS pianist and composer Nik Bartsch is best-known for leading the groups Ronin and Mobile and for the avant-garde work he crafts.

Sometimes called Zen funk, his music sits somewhere between European jazz and contemporary classical, with his trademark sound full of precise, verging on mathematical, rhythms, beats and hooks.

On Entendre he downshifts to solo piano, recording at ECM’s favoured studio, the Auditorio Stelio Molo RSI in Lugano.

Revisiting his “moduls” from previous band records, it’s the longer pieces that stand out.

The repetition and slow build of the 14-minute Modul 26 turn out to be as mesmerising as Keith Jarrett’s best work, while Modul 5’s staccato playing, unusual noises and frenetic speed left me wondering how he manipulated the piano to create such magic.

A refreshing departure from Bartsch, let’s hope this isn’t a one-off solo record.

Van Morrison
Latest Record Project: Volume 1
(Exile/BMG)
★★

VAN MORRISON’S 42nd record, a double CD of 28 songs, was apparently born of frustration about people focusing on his older material.

Mercifully Stand and Deliver — the Northern Irish singer-songwriter’s recent anti-lockdown, anti-mask song with Eric Clapton — doesn’t make the cut but there is plenty of grumpy old man guff here.

Why Are You On Facebook? is self-explanatory while Where Have All The Rebels Gone? and Big Lie are none-too-subtle broadsides against, well, I’m not sure what exactly.

Worst of all is Western Man, seemingly a reactionary lament about Western men “adrift and under attack” from “others.”

On the plus side, his voice is in great health and the mid-tempo soul-blues-jazz he peddles sounds nice enough — Duper’s Delight and Jealousy are imbued with the classic Van Morrison’s romantic spirit.

A mixed set that often leaves a bad aftertaste.

TEKE::TEKE
Shirushi
(Kill Rock Stars)
★★★★

RIGINALLY formed as a tribute act to Japanese surf and garage rock icon Takeshi “Terry” Terauchi, Montreal-based seven-piece TEKE::TEKE have grown into something much more interesting on their debut album.

Full of raucous 1960s-style Japanese psychedelic rock, it’s an exhilarating listen and you can understand why they have made a name for themselves with their live performances.

With flutes and trombones and vocalist Maya Kuroki singing —  I’m guessing, in both French and Japanese — the experimental songs sound like the kind of thing Tarantino would put on the soundtrack to a film like Kill Bill.

Fuzzy opener Kala Kala is based around Led Zeppelin-sized riffs, while the driving Barbara is almost too intense, while the sultry and classy jazzy track Dobugawa is like a lost Bond theme.

I’ve no idea where the band go from here — just enjoy the madcap ride.

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