Soft Machine - Hidden Details
SKU
MJR 093
JOHN ETHERIDGE electric & acoustic guitar
THEO TRAVIS sax, flute, Fender Rhodes piano
ROY BABBINGTON bass guitar
JOHN MARSHALL drums
guest NICK UTTERIDGE wind chimes on track 13
So....
Released just before their US tour marking the 50th anniversary of Soft Machine's 1st US tour in 1968 (!!), this is a fine and totally solid release by three alumni of the band plus Theo, who has ties to the Canterbury scene and sound that the Soft Machine are noted for.
An excellent jazz/rock release by some of the first generation of greats (Marshall & Babbington certainly qualify) along with second and third generation greats that - in a different way - is as good as anything that these musicians were doing 45 years ago!
“'Hidden Details' is very much the product of an active, contemporary sounding outfit striking out with its own agenda. Though informed by the past, the music here is neither weighed down nor beholden to it. Animated with the same ineffable and inquisitive spirit that has always made this group throughout its fifty years such a compelling experience, it’' good to have a new Soft Machine with us in 2018. The yearning tenderness of 'Heart Off Guard' and the come-down reveries of 'Broken Hill' and 'Drifting White' showcase the more intimate aspects of Soft Machine's personality while in contrast, 'One Glove' gives the more pugilistic side of John Etheridge's playing an outing. The terse angularities of the title track and 'Life on Bridges' highlight a fearless disposition, as does the buzzsaw interplay heard during 'Ground Lift' and 'Flight of the Jett,' both featuring Roy Babbington's decisive interventions. The surging lyricism of 'Fourteen Hour Dream' flirts with an almost popish sensibility, underscoring the sense that this is a quartet that is fundamentally at ease with itself. The return of what some older fans of the band have called 'cosmic tinkles’'– the appearance of layers of cyclical electric piano motifs – is especially welcome. Their brief manifestation on 'The Man Who Waved at Trains' and Third-era, 'Out-Bloody-Rageous,' both stone-cold Mike Ratledge-composed classics, adds an extra spacey dimension to the overall sound. Travis' use of looping technology with his flutes creates its own beguiling world and can be heard to powerful effect on the beautiful and enigmatic 'Breathe,' where his hovering notes are underpinned by Marshall's oblique yet atmospheric percussion.”-Sid Smith
- LabelMoonJune
- UPC692287909321