Nitin Sawhney LIVE AT RONNIE SCOTTS. Gearbox Recordings

Nitin Sawhney - Keys and Guitar
Aref Durvesh - Tabla and Vocals
Ashwin Srinivasan - Bansuri Flute and Vocals
Eric Appapoulay - Guitar and Vocals
Ian Burdge - Cello
Eva Stone - Vocals
Nicki Wells -– Vocals

““For any musician growing up in or around London, especially if you’ve grown up loving great improvisation, as I did, Ronnie Scott’s is the most iconic club to play. We’re used to playing large venues in London like the Royal Albert Hall so to then arrive at an intimate club like Ronnie Scott’s with a pared down group of my favourite musicians was sublime. I hope you enjoy the result as much as I enjoyed our wonderful three nights there.” - Nitin Sawhney

Back in 1999 I received Sawhney’s HUMAN SKIN to review and was blown away by it, and it remains one of my favourite albums of all (my) time. I therefore welcome this live album which features some of Sawhney’s finest songs performed at this iconic jazz venue. The recording quality is all-important and I’m pleased to report that the standard of this recording is extremely high. The producer has captured the live essence of the shows while rendering voices and instruments with complete clarity - the recording quality is such that played on the right quality equipment it sounds as though the performers are actually in your listening room.  For those new to Sawhney his music is largely a fusion between East and West and a good place to start is HUMAN SKIN and then this live recording. And if you want to sample a song choose ‘Homelands’ which is a work of genius in anyone’s language. Essential.

5/5

Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross THE VIETNAM WAR Soundtrack

“The Vietnam War era produced some of the greatest, most impactful music ever recorded. We are grateful that so many artists from the period wanted to be part of the film and now the soundtrack. We were equally fortunate to have had the tremendous honour to work with Trent and Atticus. Their original score beautifully complements the music from the time. And we are absolutely thrilled that our audiences will now have the chance to own the original score along with some of the best music from the film,” said Ken Burns and Lynn Novick in a joint statement.

“The sheer scale of the project combined with the magnitude of the subject matter was initially daunting for us, but the commitment, care and reverence they displayed made the experience deeply satisfying on many levels,” said Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross in a joint statement.

It’s difficult to accurately assess this album without viewing the whole ten-part documentary on this most flawed and controversial of wars involving the USA. However, I have watched the first two episodes and can fully understand what a daunting task Reznor and Ross undertook. In these episodes the score is intermingled with the most favoured popular music of the period which actually works really well. The reason for this is that the score is dark, largely deathly paced and fully instrumental with the popular music offering a diametrically opposed musical backdrop which was highly relevant at the time (the popular music is available on a separate double album). The score’s style is classical and often dreamlike - perhaps reflecting on the secrecy and poor/over-optimistic strategic thinking employed in building up to the full-scale war which eventually followed. The piano play a major role in the recording usually setting the tone for each separate part of the score and adding a deeply emotional element to the whole. Track 6 ‘Torn Polaroid’ is a primary example of this whilst it also displays a strong melody and incredibly moving vibe. The following track, ‘Before Dawn’ , features sharp percussive notes which morph into a ticking clock alongside another solid melody - one of the darkest songs here. A little later ‘Justified Response’  takes on the role of a speeding train in what is one of the rockiest songs on the album.

By the end of CD1 I’m struck by the diversity of sounds the pair have created and the atmosphere of impending disaster that the music accurately reflects. But perhaps the biggest surprise here is how well the music stands on its own, without the film. This is an extraordinary piece of work and for those who collect soundtracks, absolutely essential.

5/5