Week 7 - Wavelengths - Submarine In Space - Homegrown instrumentals that blew my mind.

This band was an unexpected find. I was looking through the Piano Man roster for kicks and I came across this band. An intriguing name itself, I went to Youtube to hear what they sound like and I was overjoyed. I love that they only play instrumentals and their sound is like nothing I ever expected to hear out of a homegrown band. Listening to this album for the first time was a phenomenal exercise in resetting my expectations from artists. I’m not very good with the labels but I guess they would be considered a Jazz-Rock band, but I think trying to categorize their sound doesn’t do them justice. There is not a single short song in this album; each one is well beyond the 5 minute mark, however, they all sound like epic ballads. There are subtle nods to other artists to keep you engaged and thinking about what you are hearing. This is one of those albums that makes you shift your commitment; it demands that you pay attention to it. Bold crescendos that come out of nowhere recenter your focus back to what you’re hearing. I’m so happy I found these guys. I really wanna see them live.

Though the entire album is absolutely brilliant, if you have to only listen to two songs, let them be these two.

1. Jamilahn - This was an amazing listen the first time round, and with each listen it got better. Little details like the subtle strings or the shake of a tambourine reveal themselves to you the deeper you dive into the music. The steady pounding of the bass drum takes on the roll of the heart beat around which this organism of sound is formed. The piano sections remind me of a darker version of the extensively covered Caravan but it is the guitar that truly steals the spotlight.
   

2. Incense - By far one of the most fun songs on the album, this song is pure adrenaline. Rapid staccato and an addictive groove, it keeps your head bobbin and subverts your expectations at every turn. The best part about this song is a very impressive keyboard solo toward the tail end of the song. I would compare it to Cory Henry’s solo in Lingus (Snarky Puppy) because I can see similar musical ideas in both, but in the end, both songs stand alone, memorable in their own rights