Duski seem to be a band who metamorphasise into different forms musically…. According to their site:<\/p>\n
It began as a chordless trio in darkest Wales comprising of sax, double bass and drums, then guitar and piano appeared. Jazz styles disappeared and heavy jams with collective improvising took its place. The piano morphed into different synthesisers and tape loops and the double bass cracked open to reveal its electric counter part.\u00a0 Standard chord progression melted away to reveal the dark minimalist progressive rock band that is Duski.<\/p>\n
This is an interesting piece to kick off with, just a short piece at 1.26, just the saxophone being played in an empty space, and I love the sound of this\u2026 Just reminds me of walking down the subway and hearing someone playing a mournful solo\u2026 Leads directly into\u2026<\/p>\n
The saxophone is joined by a double bass to give it the \u201cbottom\u201d this is all played mainly in triplets, and it\u2019s done really well, it doesn\u2019t give me the creeps as the title might suggest, but it\u2019s a lovely piece!<\/p>\n
This starts off moodily, building up, lots of fluttering notes in there, this has a bit of an eastern flavour to it, and given the right amount of editing could be used in the background of say a Marvel or Lucasfilm scene. The double bass provides a melody too, doing it\u2019s own thing\u2026..<\/p>\n
This is probably my favourite track on the album, the double bass and sax take us on a bit of trip together, sometimes the double bass is playing two notes at the same time which I like to hear it\u2019s very rare to hear that outside of jazz, and it\u2019s joined with some harmonics in there too\u2026 The sax is really airy on this. There\u2019s a theme that comes back again in this piece which really intrigues me\u2026 It sticks in your mind for a bit\u2026<\/p>\n
The bass and sax are playing a chase here, I can\u2019t decide which one\u2019s the fox and which one\u2019s the squirrel, but it gives you that image – I live in an area where foxes and squirrels co habit so now everytime I see them I\u2019ll always think of this piece!<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a very playful piece and makes you imagine how the two are signifying this image, just purely by playing and teasing each other. It\u2019s the circle of life.<\/p>\n
This is back to moody territory, I like the atmospheric feel of these tracks. Nice reverb, lending itself to the way these tracks sound, to me a good mix is just as important to the song as the song itself. This is so simple in the way it sounds nothing to distract the listener. I love the way it builds up with chromatic notes in runs and then settles to long passages. Probably my favourite track on the album.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The double and sax get all atmospheric the hypnotic melody on this got me\u2026 it\u2019s really short at :46 seconds but it\u2019s so nice building up and changing between two notes. Really effective! The notes go up and down, giving you the feeling of them being interconnected, I\u2019m thinking visually you could just imagine listening to it while lying in the grass and watching stars fall to earth and landing beside around you but in a diagonal motion but interlocking as they descend. It\u2019s the only way I can visualise it and I like it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n This is frantic to begin with, the double bass is being played percussively I\u2019m getting the feeling the bow is being struck against the side of it. The sax is played frantically and in a cascade of notes up against the double bass, it\u2019s like it goes at speed then slows down, I like the way it links into the next track really effortlessly!<\/p>\n The bow is out again, and I like the way it makes it sound like like a cello but not. The sax is playing drawn out notes to compliment the bass, and there\u2019s no competition\u2026. It\u2019s just done so beautifully. It\u2019s like one of those really tense moments in a film where everything is starting to unravel\u2026\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n That\u2019s what I see when I hear this. I can just imagine the dialogue of an antogonist telling their side of the story when I hear this\u2026\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The bass is delicately plucked on this, and the sax plays mournfully\u2026\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n You could easily listen to this in the dark and meditate on the day. Which is exactly what I\u2019m doing now. Very mellow vibe on this.<\/p>\n This is my second favourite track on the album.<\/p>\n The bass and bow are back and it\u2019s doing most of the melody work on this while the sax does the long drawn out notes. It\u2019s like something in a suspense film, and that build up to the discovery… That\u2019s the kind of vibe I\u2019m getting from it\u2026\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Ahh this is lovely! It\u2019s nice and melodic falling into step with each other, it\u2019s like I\u2019m sat in an empty jazz bar, 3am and everyone\u2019s gone home and I\u2019m contemplating the night\u2019s events\u2026. It\u2019s such a gorgeous melody to this. It just whisks my brain off to place I haven\u2019t dared to think about since pre pandemic\u2026 Definitely my favourite track on the album.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The bass is muted and it\u2019s like it\u2019s having a chase in notes with the sax\u2026 I like this idea, it\u2019s a lovely way to close out the album, very teasing in the way it\u2019s performed – don\u2019t try and predict when the notes are going to be played you\u2019d be surprised.. It\u2019s like I can imagine the two musicians going head to head trying to predict where the other\u2019s going to go.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n All in all a fab album, lots of soundscape to listen to. If you are looking for something unconventional to listen to, this is for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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