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Everyone is so sure that they know what this music is, until they have to explain it. Physicalist (67'24"), by Brooklyn-based trio Forma, will surely have people reaching for their brain pills for help. With a uniquely American charm and confidence George Bennett, John Also Bennett, Mark Dwinell take as their guiding star a musical form known for its German roots - into the loftier firmaments of the mind. Physicalist carries a powerhouse of emotional energy. Its loose electricity moves from an ominous undercurrent of warning, to celebratory beats and grooves - outward - in ever heightening circles, minimalist patterns and spacey modulations. Sequencer runs synchronized with electronic drums, motor on beneath flute solos and buzzing synth leads. Softening the overt Krautrock influences, Forma also holds forth mellow synthesizer ceremonies of dawn welcoming textures. Technological thrills abound, as this outfit seems to dust off and warm up recently rediscovered vintage keyboards, to offer near-tuned chords and thick, swelling, sweeping drones. Each of the 11 tracks found on Physicalist celebrate their own unique space through analogue electronics, aerobic rhythms or cerebral textures. But, the pleasure of this album exists beyond the thrill of sonic innovation. Physicalist offers us something magical, and mysterious, and human - the drama of the individual spirit straining toward a state of clarity. When the listener emerges from this expedition they have felt the thrill that good cosmic music delivers... a sense of having had been through something energizing and focusing.
- Chuck van Zyl/STAR'S END 3 November 2016 |
