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LLOYD MILLER & THE HELIOCENTRICS
Strut, 2010

WORLD JAZZ – Released about 6 months ago, this amazing CD got lost under a stack of crap. Very cool collaboration between the Heliocentrics (a British collective) and multi-instrumentalist Miller, a longtime resident of the Middle East who has spent decades combining jazz and Persian/Eastern music. The album is diverse, with grooving, exotic and beautiful sounds; the slightly lo-fi recording just enhances it.

NOTE: After #9, the track dividers are off by several seconds. You’ll need to cue up manually to get the start of track 10, 11 or 12.

Fo’s Picks: 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, (11)

1. 3:41 – dreamlike: flute and drums skitter across a steady bass pulse
2. 4:54 – upbeat, cyclic groove: moaning woodwind & oddly tuned piano
3. 4:12 – lovely excursion: melodies drift and twine within a caravan groove
4. 2:05 – piano & shimmering vibes/gongs in suspension… way too short
5. 6:51 – bright intro, settles into forward glide w/intersecting solo melodies
6. 3:18 – upbeat, percussive drive; dissonant horn interplay over jazzy piano
7. 3:20 – deep south Asian club groove: strings moan, great skittish rhythm
8. 3:27 – Miller rants over cool riffs, with a 1960s hipster patter. FCC clean.
9. 6:12 – layered gamelan, surges, pauses; shifts to jazz groove after 4 mins.
10. 3:05 – mysterious groove, Ethiopian flavor and deliciously slinky rhythm
11. 4:04 – hot, infectious rhythm: piano dances around dulcimer drone
12. 5:20 – walking rhythm, stately East Asian melody grows and blossoms

[ Fo ] 12/30/10