BIRDS OF FIRE

Mahavishnu Orchestra is type of jazz-rock / fusion / progressive that impressed me a lot when I first got into it. Nowadays I mainly appreciate the existance of these type of records because of their strong influence on other groups; like for instance the Finnish group 'Finnforest' (of which I can highly recommend the debut album). Or the Polish group 'SBB' and 'Leb I Sol' from Yugoslavia. On 'Birds of Fire' Mahavishnu offers some of their better pieces. The opening track 'Birds of Fire' sound like a reworked version of the opening track of their debut album, but the violins and the fast paced rhythms do create that typical Mahavishnu world-music infused feel. The cover of 'Miles beyond' has John McLaughlin playing some great sounding electric guitar riffs. The short instrumental 'Hope' is my favorite of the band; truly a majestic little piece of celestial grandeur. On side two the band first turns to its improvisational skills that I don't consider to be that creative; fingers moving fast isn't a goal in and of itself. The atmospheric melodic pieces that follow are way better in my opinion. Mahavishnu is a particular bold fusion group and progressive rock listeners expecting that beloved subtle artistry might just end up disappointed.