From dan hill Sent Sun, Sep 26th 1999, 13:47
with the recent talk of this album, thought i'd post up my review from motion ... hope you don't mind. there's sounds accompanying the review at http://motion.state51.co.uk/reviews/417.html so you can have a listen too ... it's very very good, and sadly getting ignored by the dumb media over here (uk). cheers, dan. The Cinematic Orchestra Motion Ninja Tune The Cinematic Orchestra's 'Motion' (no relation) is a lovingly-crafted homage to the 60s jazz film soundtrack, refracted through the lens of contemporary sample culture. Though collaborative, this is definitely J Swinscoe's project, presenting supporting players with sampled loops to improvise around, recording and reconstructing the results. Whilst lesser musicians would end up with a soulless mess, Swinscoe's finesse for arrangement ensures remarkable coherence, 'live' without ever feeling the need to pretend that its not sampled. You can hear the process emerging - in the clipped decay of cymbal crashes, delayed-drenched vocal samples, Gil Evans-like strings, a distant telephone used as percussion on at least three tracks, echoing Morricone's Once Upon A Time In America - but these lipstick traces of technology are as seamlessly integrated into the sound as any other instrument. Never hidden, though never obvious. Vocals are employed smartly throughout, abstract rather than narrative, indiscernible lyrically, yet stylistically hugely evocative, effortlessly conjuring jazz diva. Indeed, instruments are used more for their sound than for their melodic potential - timbre drawn from early 60s soul jazz, mid 60s free jazz, early 70s jazz funk - providing an insight into Swinscoe's primary influences. As David Toop notes in Exotica, for "film composers such as John Barry and Ennio Morricone, the attraction of sensual depths of sound ... outweights any populist urges to tether listeners in the shallows of melody." It's a little previous to add Swinscoe to this illustrious company, but he is cleverly combining this favoured MO of film composers with sample-oriented music's focus on rhythm and texture as opposed to melody. Much of the beauty of this music is in texture: Swinscoe clearly appreciates the delicate shimmer of Bill Evans' piano or Gary Burton's vibes, Buddy Rich's fizzing drum sound, how Ray Brown's warm booming bass was fundamental to 60s jazz. The drums in particular are near-perfect, managing to capture the sound of a rampaging Elvin Jones, yet looping the playing into contemporary angular loops. The sampled/live players are Tom Chant, rendering dancing Shorteresque soprano sax, joined by Jamie Coleman (tpt/flg), Phil France (bs), T. Daniel Howard (ds), Saidi Kanba (perc), and Alex James (ac/el p). There are planned live dates, including a gig at The Directors Guild Lifetime Achievement Award ceremony for Stanley Kubrick - perhaps an indication of just how good this reconstruction of 60s jazz soundtrack is. 'Motion' is occasionally rather too smoothly constructed, caught in evoking a genre, rather than exploring underlying intentions. It nods towards mid-60s free jazz, particularly on 'Bluebirds', without ever touching the heights of Coltrane's Ascension - an unreasonable expectation of course, but there are several camps ploughing this furrow at the moment, and arguably Fridge/Four Tet, Squarepusher and Ponga are pushing the scene forward by not getting caught in simulacra. Yet it would be churlish to argue that this is not an innovative, exciting, exquisitely crafted yet soulful album, as it's all of these things. This fine album is probably just too jazz for the ignorant, impotent, rock-obsessed mainstream music press, but that's their loss. One of the albums of the year fer sure. Great title too ;) ---+ dan hill [state51] ---+ new reviews on motion [26.9.99]: < paul panhuysen | ellen fullman | pilote | keb darge's legendary deep funk vol.3 | osmosis > http://motion.state51.co.uk/ +---