Indonesian’s Simakdialog have returned to start the New
Year off and bringing the culture of World Music and Jazz Fusion mixed in with
some Canterbury touches to the mix with their 2-CD set released by the good
people of Moonjune Records performed live on September 7, 2013 at Orion Sound Studios in Baltimore, Maryland. The band was on tour promoting
their upcoming album, The 6th
Story two years ago. And from the moment you put the CDs in to listen, you
can close your eyes and imagine being at the studio being in awe and taking to
a spiritual adventure of their music with tension, relax, wonder, and wonderous
ideas they would take their compositions into.
Whenever I would listen to Simakdialog, I get a sense of the
sounds of Herbie Hancock, Weather Report, Soft Machine, and Hatfield and the
North to name a few that have been mixed together in a blender into one. And
the music itself is unbelievable and creative ideas and they can take it those
sounds and having the percussions, Fender Rhodes, Guitars, and Bass, it’s the
essence of those three ideas and the genre of Progressive Rock is an
electrifying beat I’ve really get a kick out of.
Riza Arshad is bringing the Rhodes into a golden-era of the
1970s by carrying the touches of Richard Sinclair (Caravan), Mike Ratledge (Soft Machine), and Martin
Kratochvil (Jazz Q). He’s helping the band to give them where the directions
it would lead and between Tohpati along with special guest Beledo (The
Avengers), it is very much like helping out a friend in need and it’s marvelous
the way the live performances gives it that wonderful touch that you could
imagine what the band would come up with next.
There are some significant highlights throughout the entire
performance that just completely draws you into their sound and their hearts to
give out to make the most amazing live show ever done at Orion. And not just
Riza and Tohpati, but Rudy Zulkarnaen on Bass, but Endang Ramdan, Erlan
Suwardana, and Cucu Kurina on the percussion instruments, it’s a journey to a
wonderful world of the sights and the visions and the ideas they would bring to
the table.
There are some moments in which they do almost like a Tango
rhythm meets Jazz-Funk wah-wah pedals between the Rhodes and Guitar for an
amazing improvisation which its evidential on a dazzling version of For Once and Never, Beledo and Tohpati
helping Riza going through a wonderful melody on their guitars by taking it
into a Zappa-like vibe duel as you can imagine the audience being in awe and
jaw-dropping between the three of them creating some dynamic intensity on the
rhythm that is very Mahavishnu Orchestra in a Canterbury touch on 5, 6.
But on This Spirit,
in which they tribute to the Soft Machine’s Third-era
in a Chamber vibe, it’s has an ominous introduction between the Percussions and
the Fender Rhodes going into an ambient/atmospheric surrealism and the tempo
goes up for a wonderful relaxation as they get into before Riza goes into some
wonderful ideas to create something special cooking up to pay tribute to the
two keyboardists I’ve mentioned earlier (Kratochvil and Ratledge).
Simakdialog have scored an amazing welcome into 2015 with Live at Orion and from the audience
applauding and being in awe of their music, is a warm reception and the people
from Moonjune have scored a knockout with this. And after listening three times
of the 2-CD set, I get a kick out of what brainstorming ideas they bring to the
table and the live set from the Orion Sound Studios is superb and a captivating
beauty that is creative, imaginative, and tremendous.
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