Djam Karet
The members of Djam Karet (pronounced Jam Kare-RAY, not Damn Carrot) have an instrument repertoire that reads like a small orchestra, including: 7-string guitars, lutes, synthesizers, and a Mellotron. Gayle Ellett and Mike Henderson are the guitarists (with delicious dollops of duality throughout); Aaron Kenyon and Henry Osborne are the bassists, and Chuck Owen, Jr. rounds out the group on drums.
This is the California-based band’s 19th album, it's their most melodic to date. The band claims post-King Crimson/Pink Floyd nuances, but I found there was also a dusting of Yes protege Premiata Forneria Marconi, without the awkward lyrics.
The first part, Recollection Harvest, is nothing short of majestic in its power; the second part, Indian Summer, contains shorter tracks and less oomph, and I mean that in a good way. They nearly lost me though with the opening track, which was inaptly named “The March to the Sea of Tranquility.” Tranquil it ain’t, but it was heavy, melodramatic and ponderous, but not Frankenstein-ish enough to put me off.
The second track, “Dr. Money”, with its humour and jazzy riffs snapped me right back. Track three is where things really got going; at once sorrowful and beautiful. It’s a subtle soundscape, and at over 11 minutes long, it’s also a mini-symphony.
Some tracks use bass as a secondary melody line. Others are comedic; light like a carousel. There’s quirky new age, blurred lines of worldbeat, fusion, and rock. I was spirited off to “The Great Plains of North Dakota” on track 8; not the U.S. north Midwest in general, specifically the North Dakota plains. How’d they do that?
The last rack, “Requiem”, brought me calmly back to earth. While far from classical, it’s evocative of Mozart’s work of the same name (only shorter). It demonstrates classical interpretations such as dirge-like slowness, but is punctuated with soaring emotionalism. I think there are voices in chorus as that track wraps, but I was too far adrift to be sure.
With stunning production values, precision on strings, even little overkill on the drums, but as steady as she gets. One of the most diverse and gripping works I’ve heard outside of Taneyev, Tchaikovsky, and Mahler; and these guys are still alive.
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