Igizeh

It's music to make you think.

The tunes are rhythmical (as far as a 4/4 beat can be rhythmical I suppose) and interesting but for the most part you aren't going to walk away humming them. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I think the tracks leave a pictorial impression in you head rather than a melodic one. Which may seem a strange thing to say given that this a CD of music but I think it sums up the mood fairly well.

All in all it's a pretty good CD and I would definitely recommend it to others!

The album opens with a typical atmospheric Banco De Gaia slow builder - "Seti 1". Moody synth drones, calls to prayer, children's voices and birdsong gradually give way to dense and frenzied percussion, over which the chanted main theme of the tune builds and builds before giving way to pounding drum breaks.

The dark mood is suddenly lifted by the pure summer of "Obsidian" - an uplifting and upbeat dance track complemented by the gorgeous vocals of Jennifer Folker.

From there the album winds it's way through the Orb-like Arabic tinged percussion of "Creme Egg", the Portishead-like lo-fi of "Glove Puppet", to the dancey Moroccan jazz of "Gizeh". The crazed sitar of "How Much Reality..." soon gives way to the chilled out dub of "B2" a track very typical of Mark's earlier work.

The start of the penultimate track, "Fake It Till You Make It", has echoes of "Shine on you Crazy Diamond" by Pink Floyd, and builds to a beautifully romantic string climax before descending (in true Banco De Gaia style) into an upbeat Arabic jazz boogie.

The album closes with "Sixty Sixteen" - a superb track, very reminiscent of early stuff by The Orb, that begins with deceptively simple and sombre reed organ melody, but which is gradually layered with more and more percussive sounds and strings built around a refreshingly complex time signature change.

This is a very good album in the truest sense of the word - it isn't just a collection of disjointed tracks thrown onto a CD to sell. There's real thought behind how everything has been put together and the sheer density of rhythms, sounds and samples on "Igizeh" means that this is an album that constantly rewards the listener with something new.

To those who are familiar with any of Banco de Gaia albums I would recommend "Igezeh" too. To those who aren't I would describe this as ambient dub/ethnic chant/dance/club/rock with one track being instantly recognisable as trip-hop but more importantly this is great music. One thing I have noticed often when I have played Banco de Gaia in the car someone might ask what the music is. It is not in-your-face and it is not especially well-known but it is enchanting music.