Nucleus
We'll Talk About It Later

Certain music speaks a strange language, without well-defined signifiers and with referents that our unconscious establishes; certain music tickles the brain, points it in a direction we can't even identify, plunges it into a vertigo that, far from being chaotic, is actually a construction architected to the millimeter. Something that enriches us.

"We'll Talk About It Later" is an example of that certain music. Music for neurons. An album that the ensemble gathered around Carr records in a handful of days under the influence of their victory at the Montreux Jazz Festival. On that occasion, Nucleus played a twenty-minute set driven by various different and concatenated themes, something already in their strings from their debut album. And indeed in their second work (presented by another beautiful cover, this time by Roger Dean) the compositions expand, taking on a dynamism and a new and entirely unexpected drive, much more colorful compared to the sobriety and muted tones of "Elastic Rock". More importantly, here they are a real band, a solid (and unfortunately ephemeral) group that revolves especially around the pyrotechnic axis Jenkins - Spedding. Take "Song For The Bearded Lady": a beginning that already puts synapses on alert, a unique piece, birthed by the oboist but participated by all with an almost ecstatic energy. It's captivating, reflective, methodical, alive in every way.

The characteristic of "We'll Talk" is precisely its changing vitality, cerebral yet direct, complex yet perfectly balanced: in this sense, the solos are never an end in themselves but are cradled, motivated, as in the rock-solid "Sun Child", led by the oboe, which, by the way, highlights the versatile and refined skill of John Marshall, a man who does whatever he wants behind the skins. Confirming that in the jazz-rock category Nucleus is quite constrained, there's the exotic and delicate touch of "Lullaby For a Lonely Child": supported by Carr's and Brian Smith's winds, what characterizes it most is the surprising bouzouki (a kind of Greek banjo) played by Spedding, gently striking our consciousness. And then there's pulsating energy again in the title track, where once again Spedding takes the lead, without the technical explosiveness of Allan Holdsworth but with a taste for nuance and rhythmic finesse that makes us fall to our knees, intoxicated. The powerful call and response between him and Jenkins, cemented by Marshall, are true manna for the ears and everything in between, and manna are the rhythmic and atmospheric experimentalisms of "Oasis", almost ten minutes of mental storytelling, hypnosis where the trumpet's round sound crosses with the oboe's shriek. But we also have the freshness, agility, and apparent whimsicality of "Ballad Of Joe Pimp", one of the very few sung tracks of the band, an astonishing homage and "hats off" to Frank's mustache and his "Hot Rats" pimp. I believe the voice is Spedding's (already a singer on "Mantle Piece" of the Battered Ornaments project) who also performs "counter-songs" with overdubbed guitars and wah-wah.

The finale is choral, the elder son of "Battle of Boogaloo", dazzling and powerful. "Easter 1916", inspired by the Irish uprisings of that year,, is a true marathon, and as such it has its life and progression: everyone on track at the start, launched into a guided improvisation at first, then free and fiery, there's even a hoarse and peculiar voice that becomes an instrument itself. Then gradually the positions outline, and the instruments slip away; first the voice leaves, then the guitar, the bass, finally the duelists remain only two, sax and drums, chasing, seeking, challenging, and avoiding each other. Marshall prevails, his the stage, forty seconds of lucid drumming frenzy, rolls and stop.

This sonic fluid is sap for attentive brains; a unique album that rediscovers itself, and you, every time. I can't guarantee miracles, but listening to it might even change your day. I can't say how, but certainly for the better.

Thank you, Ian, and good night (February 25th, 2009).