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Project B subthunk Ureneely Recordings, 2001
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Reviewed by Sienna Powers
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"Genre-bending" is a term that gets tossed around a lot when PR flacks are dreaming up stuff to write about their charges. Used in this way -- by said flacks -- it tends to mean music so innovative and so far without boundaries that it defies description and -- certainly -- easy categorization. And most of the time such description -- especially when made by media flacks -- is about as meaningful as you would expect. I've spun tracks that are clearly country that have been dressed up with the "genre-bending" appellation. And blues. And jazz. And funk. The thing is, as much as musicians -- and their toadies -- tend to loathe categorization, genres exist for a reason. If you're shopping for Barbra Streisand and come up with -- say -- subthunk, you're going to be mighty pissed. They're not the same thing at all. Thus: genres: the piles we put stuff into so we can get to the things we like and want and need more quickly. So, generally, when I read that a group is "genre-bending" my head and my heart go into shutdown mode: because, most of the time, it's simply not true. And if, as is the case with subthunk, they've also made up a genre for themselves, just in case you insist, well that's two strikes. I go in ready for rebellion: my own. However, despite my best intentions, I like subthunk. A lot. And I have to agree: this Los Angeles-based foursome is bending some genres. But they're bending them beautifully, knowledgeably and with purpose. What we end up with on the group's Project B is an entirely fresh blend of jazz, funk and the sort of electronica that can most easily be described as ambient. It's not surprising that subthunk ("arbitrarily spelled with a small 's' for absolutely no reason whatsoever") has laid down an album so intellectually satisfying as well as tonally pleasing: they're a smart outfit and they've brought their collective education and world experience to this immensely pleasing CD. At the heart of subthunk is Antony Neely ("Ant") who has a degree in zoology from Glasgow University in Scotland. More recently, and when not subthunk-ing, as a graphic artist, Neely has done work for Sony Music, Fox Interactive, Warner Brothers and others. (If you get the connection, clue me in. But I think it's all pretty fun anyway.) subthunk FXharp and engineer, Alex U'Ren, has a degree in psychology from UC Northridge. Fretless electro-acoustic bass player, Pharoah (apparently the only name he has) studied bass and performance in Boston. Among the SoCal bands he's played with, his most notable affiliation was playing bass and singing backup with The Four Horsemen. Percusamplist and CDJ, Mike Silverman ("Ahlers"), has traveled the world playing guitar and drums. He considers his style "discretely [sic] experimental." His professional appearances have ranged from being part of an opera to performing on the streets of Stone Town, Zanzibar to DJing professionally. Obviously, you put four guys as musically-centered and eclectically mixed as these together and you're going to come up with something at least faintly interesting. Project B (will someone please tell me what happened to Project A?) is as unexpected as you'd expect from a mix like this. While the band-conceived genre of "triptonica" implies a coldly electronic Jetson-appropriate sound, Project B manages to be warm, human and distinctly electronic. Well, human and bovine in the case of the title, "Project B," a sublimely ambient track that opens on a (possibly electronic and skillfully laid down) cow mooing. The CD opens with "Pretty Groovy Man" which is pure new millennium with a distinct -- though subtle -- 1970s funk influence. Groovy, indeed. "Post Serial" gives us a sort of Latin-influenced-retro-ambiant-funk. (How's that for a mouthful?) Despite a completely au courant feel, you keep waiting for a sixties adventure television series to break out. Very cool. I like the final track "Skunk Thunk" perhaps best of all. In the first place, you just have to love the name, especially since it so captures the serious-yet-playful nature of this outfit. And, personally, I think it should have been the title of the album: Skunk Thunk by subthunk, how cool is that? The song itself is great, as well. And of all the tracks included, it seems to most perfectly define this group. A seriously brilliant guitar solo about halfway into the song brings up a vision of Carlos Santana. The electronics here are brilliant, as well, including a very Hammond-like organ sound that features on a lot of the track. Like much of subthunk's current work, "Skunk Thunk" sounds at once distinctly off-planet and deeply organic. Project B is a splendid album, even if I would have given it a different name. | September 2002
Sienna Powers is a writer, editor and visual artist. |
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