Label: Moonjune Records

Tracks:

1. Jerome's Spotlight (2.51)
2. Trip the Light (4.10)
3. Dance of the Kabuki (6.56)
4. Prelude (0.56)
5. No Diamond Cries (3.28)
6. East Flatbush (0.49)
7. Buzz (3.17)
8. Smoke and Mirrors (4.50)
9. Conversation Drag (3.59)
10. World of Suprise (2.24)
11. Ghosts (2.08)
12. Fashion (5.13)
13. Fuzz (6.57)
14. As the Sun (7.35)

Musicians:

• Clint Bahr - lead vocals, 12-string bass, bass pedals
• Keith Gurland - clarinet, flute, alto and tenor sax, pedals, and backing cals
• Steve Romano - acoustic and electronic percussion

TriPod is an atypical power-trio. Though the soloist elements of the power trios are often a guitarist or a keyboardist, in this occasion it is a saxophonist.

This one is the second album of this band from New York, an album that is titled exactly as the first one (that still I could not have listened), "TriPod", so the most suitable thing would be to call to this second album TriPod 2 to avoid confusions.

All three members are real virtuosos in its instruments, emphasizing Keith Gurland, who might be included perfectly among great saxophonists of the progressive rock, without anything to envy to David Jackson or Mel Collins among others. Also to emphasize the excellent voice of the bassist Clint Bahr who notices this aggressiveness that we find in the execution of the music. No guitars or keyboards sound in this album, at least if we notice to the credits, because really some basses sound as if they were guitars, and also it is possible to hear what sounds like a synthesiser in the track "World of Surprise".

To define the music of this trio, we might refer perfectly to Van der Graaf Generator, Morphine and Primus as more noticed possible influences, though often with approximations to more jazzy sounds type French TV for example. Or differently, sound rather jazz-rock and avant-garde, with spirit rocker, with the dirt that contributes an important punk or grunge feel, and progressive soul thanks to some tracks with more trend to the structural complexity.

Most of the tracks can enter inside the definitions that I have just specified. Some more direct ones emphasizing "Jerome's Spotlight", "Trip the Light" and "World of Surprise"; and others more progressive complexes, excellent all of them, as "Sun Dances of the Kabuki", "Conversation Drag", "Fashion", "Fuzz" and "As the Sun".

Also some tracks point in a different way like the mystic "Smoke and Mirrors slightly more experimental, "Ghosts" and the brief instrumental pieces are a minute long.

Three tracks of this album already appeared in the first cd of the band.

An excellent album, especially the second half, of an original band that might made us happy.

Rating: 7.5/10

Ferran Lizana