It’s been a long fall from grace for jazz. What was once a free-form musical revolt has been tamed and relegated to the crackling speakers in a dentist’s office. Not so in Minnesota. Local quartet Electropolis are part of a new breed attempting to reclaim the disregard for rules and convention that makes jazz such a thrilling part of the American musical tradition. But while the attempt is valiant, the results are mixed.
Their self-titled CD boasts a mix of “spontaneously improvised compositions” alongside more traditional individual offerings. Having these two methods creates a huge gulf in quality, with the improvised sets far outshining their counterparts. These group creations bring out the best in Electropolis, showing a band that is capable of real magic when members push each other to new artistic heights. “Scorched” features hyperactive saxophones firmly situated against a wall of thick bass and blistering noise. “Sailing the Flat Earth” is a thoroughly danceable psychedelic freak out. And “Dagobah” lulls with eerie electronic ramblings that explode into a raucously chucky bass groove.
However, the longer this album goes on, the clearer it becomes Electropolis is playing with a limited bag of tricks. By the halfway mark, the saxophones grate and the bass lines monotonously plunk. Tracks like “Lead Soldiers” and “Blue Omni” are as vanilla as they come, and no amount of weird background noises can change the fact that “Naughty Maria” could easily be played on any smooth jazz station in the country.
While Electropolis probably won’t be providing the next sound track to your root canal, getting a consistently solid performance from them can seem like pulling teeth. I absolutely agree with their claim to make music that “toys with your restless leg syndrome.” Sadly enough, it’s often from boredom. MS
www.electropolis-net.com
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