* * * * *
It's one of those things that is so hard to describe - a setting, a mood,
a scenario. Hokey as it may sound, this music takes you away into a land of
imagination, of bartered energies and climatic euphoria.
Face it, McLaughlin is all but spent on the electric guitar. Indeed after
two or three original Mahavishnu Orchestra albums, he began to use the same
bent-string, repetitive devices which eventually led to boredom and cliche.
Fortunately though, he's put down his hammerdrill, and once again has formed
a totally acoustic aggregation, one which seems attuned to his highly
individualistic plane of ethereal consciousness.
One by one, the works flow with breathtaking continuity. Danse
starts off whimsically, with some Indian scat-singing (yes, there is such
a thing) by Vikku and Hussain, which eventually yields to some madcap
violin-guitar solo trading and parallel lines from L.Shankar and McLaughlin.
Shankar, who should receive more individual acclaim than he has, carries
the weight on two other compositions, the sad, dirge-like Lady L and
the duet, Two Sisters. His tones remind one of a cross-pollinization
between a gypsy violinist, with long, protracted high notes, and a down-to
earth Leroy Jenkins, with excesses muted for the greater good.
Overall, the sound and mixture is quite tight, never too busy, and quite
comprehensible. Nowhere do we see those indulgent rides to nowhere and the
oft-pointless jamming that marked the first Shakti LP. Even silence is used
as a tool; the subtle pauses on the marathon Isis create an eerie,
hanging effect. Even the percussion enhances; the many duels between tabla
and claypot are quite intricate. Yet for all their multi-beat complexity,
the beats of Hussain and Vikku serve to energetically underscore the
propulsion of the lead players.
-shaw, down beat