Review Summary: An intense voyage.
Trioscapes is the latest musical project of Dan Briggs from Between the Buried and Me, who brought together musicians, Walter Fancourt and Matt Lynch, to record their debut album,
Separate Realities. This is a truly impressive performance, one embellished with a high level of musical intensity. The sound of Separate Realities is very reminiscent of The Mahavishnu Orchestra, not only in its rambunctious depiction of Jazz Fusion, but as well as in its enthusiasm for the cosmic effects found in typical Progressive rock. The album opens with
"Blast Off", and instantly the music erupts with elaborate instrumentation from each musicians. Walter Fancourt's saxophone performance is mind-blowing, bombarding the listener with an excessive release of solos that will be sure to overwhelm the senses. Then of course we have bassist Dan Briggs, who always augments the groove of the music with his enthralling basslines. We can really see Dan Briggs and Walter Fancourt connecting with each other throughout the album, combining their prowess to manipulate the melodic structure of the music with innovative rhythmic variations.
The musicians in Trioscapes have certainly developed quite the synergy during the recording sessions, and it can be easily perceived by this performance alone. Most of the compositions in the album follow a very elevated pace, but there are moments of alleviation when Trioscapes experiments with a more atmospheric approach.
"Gemini's Descent", for example, is a very gentle piece. It has a soothing texture decorated with ambient effects and tribalistic aesthetics that induces a delicate vibe.
"Curse Of The Ninth" is one of the highlights in the album because it is an amalgamation of the many different influences that inspired this project. It expresses elements of atmospheric psychedelia within its sound, before bursting with energetic solos of utterly chaotic instrumentation that appear and vanish as they please.
The album also contains a cover of
"Celestial Terrestrial Commuters" from The Mahavishnu Orchestra's 1973 classic,
Birds Of Fire. This particular rendition of
"Celestial Terrestrial Commuters" was actually one of the first ventures that the band produced. It's an interesting cover because where in the original John McLaughlin directed the song with his guitar work, we instead find Walter Fancourt's saxophone carrying us along throughout most of the song. In the end, Trioscapes proves to be yet another promising endeavor from Dan Briggs. Separate Realities is an album that perfectly coalesces the cosmic ambience of Progressive rock with the improvisational atmosphere of Jazz Fusion. And when given the attention and enthusiasm it requires, one may find Separate Realities to be a truly entertaining experience right to the very end.
