If 2015 is going to be an excellent year in the Progressive Rock scene,
then the Rock in Opposition genre is getting there in full speed with the
Chamber sounds coming at you like an unexpected handshake with the realms of
Karda Estra. I first heard Karda Estra’s music few years ago on Friday Night
Progressive and not to mention Prog Rock Deep Cuts with Ian Beabout. And that
was where I became hooked into the world of Richard Wileman.
Since forming in 1998, Wileman’s concept for Karda Estra is
inspired by the elements of Neo-Classical and Chamber music in a darker moody
atmosphere with a gothic background that is a chilling vibe that makes it a
terrifying soundtrack for a horror film. Karda Estra has released ten albums
and this year is their 11th with the release of Strange Relations released on Kavus Torabi’s label, Believer’s
Roast.
It’s a mixture of Jazz, Avant-Rock, Canterbury, and a twist
of Psych-Zappa rolled into a gigantic milkshake and those ingredients are mixed
in well of those combinations. Featuring drummer of The Muffins Paul Sears and
third time appearance of Kavus Torabi himself from Guapo, Knifeworld, and Gong,
he (Torabi) is a very busy man when it comes to projects like this, It is a
wonderful combination. Not to mention Richard’s wife, Illesha on vocals, Amy
Fry on Clarinet and Saxophone, Mike Ostime on Trumpet, and Caron De Burgh on
Oboe and Cor Anglis.
With inspirations of the collection from author Philip Jose
Farmer, the six-part Strange Relations suite
could have been recorded in a dark cavernous place and it fits very well to the
ominous, hidden, and sinister yet energetic with a folky fusion electronic
Zeuhl touch to it. There are moments in the 6-part epic that almost reminded me
of Danny Elfman’s score for a Tim Burton film between both Wileman and Sears
followed by Torabi’s clean and layered minor guitar sounds along with Iilesha’s
vocalizations that reminded me of The Northettes,
But there is also late ‘60s psych score in there with the
xylophones creating the tension with the chaotic crescendos and a Crimson-sque
moment thrown in on some unexpected eyebrows lightening up at the exact spot on
where Richard takes the pieces into. And a waltz-like crunch and the thumping
haywire effects into ascending chaotic rhythms and ending with an anxiety
screech of the horn section along with Sears going into the places on his drums
and knowing where the finale is reaching the nightmarish tones.
It is a terrifying and hypnotic adventure on the suite and
knowing that Wileman isn’t going to give you Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, but to
give you a menacing composition that mixes Neo-Classical-Chamber-Jazz Rock, as
a frightening voyage into the terror you haven’t seen before. The last two
pieces are worth the trip.
On Ylla, in which
it was inspired by the late great Ray Bradbury’s short stories from the 1953
sci-fi novel, The Martian Chronicles, Amy’s
clarinet and saxophone gives it that doomy and ambient nightmarish world on
what the character has to go through with her husband, the dreams of the Earth
people, and the price that pays for killing. It’s a tragic and dysfunctional
story, but the music captures the essence of Bradbury’s tale that would have
made him very proud of it.
The closer, The Wanton
Subtlety of Monna Tessa, based on Giovanni Boccaccio’s The Decameron, has a medieval introduction before going into a
Zappa meets Mike Oldfield-sque section in a cross between acoustic guitar,
bass, laid-back drums, and xylophones along with Illesha’s vocalizations going
into a ¾ waltz section and back into the psychedelic spooky with an ascending
vibe.
All of a sudden, it becomes a quirky driven harpsichord
Elfman-like score that is off the wall before sending off into the end. This is
my third time listening to Strange
Relations. And while this is an introduction into the music and world of
Richard Wileman, this is a band that needs to be on the look out for and I cannot
wait to hear more of Karda Estra’s music later on this year to see what minds
and brainstorming ideas that Richard has in his head.
So if you love the essence of RIO, Chamber, Zeuhl, Zappa,
and Avant-Psych Jazz, then Karda Estra’s Strange
Relations is the album worth exploring into the combination of the five. Just be prepared for the unexpected moments that will make your eyes go up at the exact spot!
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