Is this really the same artist that recorded these two albums? “Forest of Lost Children” is quite blues and 70s rock based, although ‘Semicircle’ is more suggestive of an improvised rough take by a circle of friends around a campfire. ‘Kodama’ sounds like a slowed-down STATUS QUO riff-driven piece, underproduced with sitar-like guitar. ‘Smoke and Mirrors’ stands head and shoulders above these two, charming as they are in their own way – a real blast, I thought I was listening to a freaked-out FOCUS near the end. A raucous upbeat psychedelic take on Ananda Shankar’s ‘Streets of Calcutta’ comes next, with a sitar solo included, of course, and an electric guitar/ sitar question and answer. ‘Hem’ is another absolute cracker, with the wild wah-wah and in your face bass. The charming two-part ‘White Moon’ if a tad repetitive at first is the closest the music comes to the ‘folk’ tag often applied amongst various others, as sitar reappears.
“Masada Temples” is a more mature album (although there’s no denying the no holds barred high octane explorative riff rock of ‘Forest of Lost Children’ is anything other than great fun). The sitar playing has certainly progressed, as on opener ‘Entrance’; the vocals are nice, with both ‘Majupose’ and ‘Nana’ sounding uncannily like STEREOLAB. The funky beat of ‘Gatherings’ with its nice retro organ and soaring guitar runs is another peak on a varied and thoroughly engrossing album that crackles with ideas.
BANDCAMP is the place to listen.
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