ALBUM REVIEW: The New Normal – Trifecta
Few fields of rock music host as many people full of colour and character as progressive rock, who aren’t afraid to let their imaginations – both musical and conceptual – run wild. Such is the case in the TRIFECTA project – a band consisting of three luxury prog musicians – bassist Nick Beggs (KAJAGOOGOO, THE MUTE GODS), prominent jazz keyboardist Adam Holzman (once of MILES DAVIS’ live band) and drummer Craig Blundell (FROST*, KINO), all of whom are frequent recording and touring collaborators of STEVEN WILSON. With their second full-length The New Normal, they present another tasty concoction of prog, jazz and funk, generously dipped into a sauce of Monty Python-esque surrealism.
The angular groove of opener Beck And Call sets the tone with a hook-filled demonstration of musical chops, full to the brim with odd-time signatures, unusual scales and chord voicings, and extensive soloing. While the band are an instrumental outfit for the most part, some songs feature vocals – such as the wonderfully weird Stroboscopic Fennel where Beggs (whose voice has pleasant shades of the Louis Theroux about it) narrates surreal poetry over a tasty slab of funkatronica. Elsewhere, the rarely-seen prog musical skit finds expression in Sibling Rivalry – a whimsical jam around two bickering brothers and a talent for the didgeridoo.
As befits any instrumental album that doesn’t take itself too seriously, there are some gloriously odd song titles – including, but not limited to, Just Feel It Karen, Ornamental Lettuce and the haunting beauty of Bach Stabber. But not everything is whimsy and jest, and some of the vocal songs have a more serious side to them. Stupid Pop Song is a tasteful piece of Latin prog pop with shades of SANTANA or SADE. Even better is the balladic Once Around The Sun With You, sounding like an artefact of the band members’ association with STEVEN WILSON. Beggs isn’t exactly a powerhouse of a singer, but in the case of the latter song his voice imbues it with fragility and sentiment, only strengthened by the fact that minutes earlier we were hearing him berate himself in a stream-of-consciousness ditty. This mix of moods further helps the record stay fresh – simultaneously giving the occasional earnest songs more weight, and keeping the general feeling of oddness from becoming too heavy-handed.
The New Normal is overall a fun and engaging listening experience with plenty of musical talent and variety on display, as well as a few chuckles to be had if you share TRIFECTA’s brand of humour.
Rating: 7/10
The New Normal is out now via Kscope.
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