A to Z
ARP
Ensemble – Live! MEXICAN SUMMER
7/10
Ever restless New York producer finds peace
Though 2018’s Zebra was as indebted to Tears For Fears as Talk Talk, and as reminiscent of ECM as ESG, Alexis Georgopoulos’s latest puts him in the studio flexing his jazz muscles live with a quintet. Oldies “Nzuku” and “Ozu” are faithfully represented, but “Reading A Wave”’s cosmic tendencies point toward four new, freeform tracks, not least “Voices”, whose minimalist dub bass, flute and percussion combine Can and eviscerated Afrobeat. “Eos”’s fluttering saxophones, undulating piano and plucked upright bass, meanwhile, are oddly both delirious and placid, and “Autumn Piece (For Jiri Kovanda)” suggests Sun Ra finding harmony in space. WYNDHAM WALLACE
BANTOU MENTALE
Bantou Mentale
GLITTERBEAT
8/10
Startling debut from Parisian-based African adventurers
Bringing together members of experimental Congolese breakout acts Konono No 1 and Staff Benda Bilili, Bantou Mentale subvert every expectation conjured by the term “world music” in a kinetic, chaotic mash-up of dubstep, grime, electro, Afro-funk and tribal beats. The fractious, subterranean mix is laced with a conventional guitar lick here and a recognisable vocal harmony there, briefly rendering the sound relatable to something you might’ve heard before, but then they charge off again on another challenging sonic onslaught into uncharted territory. Quite what to call this extraordinary global hybrid, the terminology hasn’t yet been invented – but that’s its glory. NIGEL WILLIAMSON
JR BOHANNON
Dusk FIGUREIGHT
8/10
Ambitious fingerstyle inventions from Brooklyn guitar soli
Dusk is a solo guitar album loosely in the American Primitive tradition, but JR Bohannon stands a little apart from your average Fahey disciple. Yes, there’s footloose fingerpicking with a casual, countryside air – see the opening “Reflection Of An American Dream”. But deeper in, Dusk takes on different hues. “Saint Etienne” draws on the ineffable sadness of Greek music, while “A Continuous Harmony” cycles through shimmering repetitions in a nod to the classical minimalists. Finally, “The Sorcerer’s Hand” pairs him with NYC drum-for-hire Greg Fox and double bassist Luke Stewart for some turbulent improvising rich with mystic intent. LOUIS PATTISON
BONNIE “PRINCE” BILLY
I Made A Place DOMINO
8/10
Will Oldham’s first album of new material in nearly a decade
It would be incorrect to assert that Will Oldham has been entirely idle since the release of 2011’s superb Wolfroy Goes To Town: his prolific discography has been kept ticking over with various projects, some less quixotic than others, including a reworking of Wolfroy, a Merle Haggard covers album, and a collaboration with Bitchin’ Bajas. Of I Made A Place, the greatest compliment it can be paid is that it sounds like no time at all separates it from its predecessor. It’s a(nother) fine album of gently joyous country songs: “The Devil’s Throat” and “This Is Far From Over” are fit to be compared with, and indeed sung by, John Prine. ANDREW MUELLER
BRIX & THE EXTRICATED
Super Blood Wolf Moon GRIT OVER GLAMOUR
7/10
More good work from The Fall’s bad news girl
The late Mark E Smith did not welcome his ex-wife returning to the stage with a band of ex-Fall members, but he might have grudgingly admired Brix & The Extricated’s productivity rate. Their third album in as many years, Super Blood Wolf Moon demonstrates the Extricated’s own always-different-always-the-same quality, the strident-voiced Brix Smith-Start successfully relocating the spirit of Love’s Forever Changes to the workingmen’s clubs of Manchester once again. “Wintertyde” and “Crash Landing” best exemplify their tuneful mélange of incense, peppermints and that eternally mighty Hanley brothers rhythm section: a pleasing halfway point between love-in and lock-in. JIM WIRTH
CIGARETTES AFTER SEX
Cry PARTISAN
7/10
Less smoke, more sleaze on dream-pop trio’s second
Having created a simple but powerfully intoxicating musical template on their 2017 debut, these Texan Brooklynites don’t seem overly inclined to overhaul the formula. “Don’t Let Me Go” has a comfortingly familiar slow dance sway, wreathed in dreamy reverb, whereas the blissful romantic pop of “Heavenly”, resembles an elegant reimagining of
