Travel

The Necks - “Travel”
Reviewed by Brady 8/7/2023

A beautifully accessible jazz-adjacent journey through 4 rhythmic and endlessly compelling tracks. Instrument soup for the headphoner’s soul.

Wow. Just wow. Complex but highly accessible, this genre-bending exploration of sound hosts 4 long form tracks of atmospheric instrumentation prominently featuring the piano, the drums, and the stand-up bass to create the main theme, with a plethora of other instruments embroidering the rich tapestry that is this album. Engagingly repetitive, sometimes ceremonial, sometimes pleasantly droning, every moment is alive. General tempo is gentle but attention grabbing. All tracks are superb. Start with track 1 to get hooked.
**No FCCs. Album is good to go.

1.) 20:50 - A crystal-clear steadfast bass line and a gentle cymbal-heavy percussion guides you through this head-bobbing journey. At 5 minutes you’re led into some light submarine-radar-esque trills, which introduce you to a shy but playful piano that creates a sense of intrigue for what is to come. At 12 minutes, hints of organ tones are layered in, alluding to further use of the instrument later on.
2.) 20:13 - Lots of soft sounds, shaken percussion, rattles, soft cymbals. A meek piano snakes its way through this otherwise forebodingly rattly intro, keeping the mood optimistic. If track 1 was the journey down into a sunken pyramid, this track would be the sound of meandering through its ominous halls. Around 10 minutes, an uptempo guitar thrumming keeps the pace quick and advancing.
3.) 17:14 - Ceremonial in nature. Opens with lilting strings, quickly introduces a rhythmic bass drum percussion accompanied by something reminiscent of ankle bells. The wandering piano continues to ask its questions amongst this primal and ceremonial landscape.
4.) 18:38 - Opens with the haunting organ that track 1 was hinting at and a droning low-tone bass that persists throughout. The same curious piano that is thematic if this album joins in soon after that. At 5 minutes, a running snare drum creates a sense of tension that is contrasted by the gentle tinkling of the piano. At 10 minutes, big cymbal crashes usher in the crescendo that the snare was alluding to. Dramatic. Closes with the same organ that brought us in for a nice round mouthfeel.