21ST CENTURY DRIFTING EPISODE

Second studio album of modern Finnish big band (brass section, accordion, guitar, percussion section, drums, bass - in all 22 musicians!). Band plays brass jazz based music, but by its content it could be placed somewhere on the borderline between jazz and avant prog.

Sound is relaxed, airy and even ascetic in moments - in North European tradition. Not too many emotions are showed, but these strange fusion elements are quite emotional themselves: from African percussion to Balkan rhythm to klezmer to Finnish folk. All this mix is spiced by delicate amount of progressive rock arrangements and scent of psychedelia.

Being heavily brass-filled, from the first listening album's music could sound as modern big band, but open ear listener very soon realize that by it's structure and atmosphere this brew is more similar to NY down town avant (a-la John Zorn), just much more relaxed,more psychedelic, strongly influenced by Finnish folklore and less emotional.

Great combination of Sun Ra/modern jazz/folk, rare example of easy accessible complex music nowadays.

My rating is 3+ .