BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
CD Release: Tasman by Brian Wroten
Brian Wroten’s Tasman boasts all the confidence and passion of a 21st Century composer with a millennium’s worth of styles at his feet. Brian’s instrumentation is as intelligent as it is playful, and throughout the album he effectively weaves together the contrasting textures of saxophone, flute, strings, voice, and drums.
‘Jinha’ opens with a funky bass line which is initially meditative in its repetition but soon builds to an anxious climax. The ten minute track ends as peacefully as it began, and expresses an abundance of differing and seamlessly connected moods.
‘Aurelia’ exhibits a sound far more abstract, but as the second track on the album, our ears are warmed up to accept its less conventional composition. Both surreal and serene, ‘Aurelia’ gives the impression of a pool of water matching perfectly with the album art.
While ‘Tas’ begins with a near jungle beat, ‘Sea’ sounds a heavy and dark unison of multiple instruments over flurried drums.
By far the eeriest and most atmospheric track is ‘Swan’. Wordless whispers morph into an unnatural wave of white noise while a strong male vocal howls a ghostly Eastern melody. The other-worldly atmosphere is juxtaposed with the guitar’s repetitive and disturbingly major sounding motive.
Tasman is a contemporary masterpiece by a writer not afraid to push the limits of conventional composition. Do not attempt to drive or operate heavy machinery while under Brian’s influence.
