Funk Ark – High Noon
Reviewed by Sadie O., 3/30/12
Funk/Afro/Latin/Jazz from DC. Excellent musicianship and improvisation (which doesn’t get in the way of their sense of fun), and all very Afrobeat-FUNKY. Mostly instrumentals, except for track 7, which is outstanding.
1. 3:25 ***upbeat syncopated funk, swingy Afro-Cuban percussion. Groovy, grunty alto sax solo.
2. 6:05 **uptempo Latin percussion, chimes. Add instruments – the total package is very cool, but the chimes are a bit forward in the mix for my tastes. Dueling horn solos.
3. 6:30 ***bass and percussion intro, farfisa… Uptempo and upbeat, with vocal chorus. Almost salsa – very dance-oriented Latin feel. Guitar and farfisa solos.
4. 5:40 ***uptempo but relaxed, stuttering guitars and punchy horn line (don’t know how that adds up to “relaxed”, but hey…) Switches to higher energy midway through – almost Santana-esque guitar, then back to relaxed, almost dreamy vibe with chimes.
5. 6:01 ****slow and downbeat with a definite hint of wild west vibe. Still super swingy. Mondo cool, and gets cooler by the minute.
6. 4:57 ***bass and shakers intro, then midtempo laid back superfunk with lots of solos. Back to bass and shakers, punchy horns.
7. 5:39 *****bass intro, then relaxed and supercool FUNK. More of a Memphis-Nawlins vibe to this. Sashay! Male singing on this one – Southern soul cooking, no doubt.
8. 3:51 ****bass starts things going, syncopated uptempo romp, riding the snare, with killer horns, wild sax solo.
9. 5:18 ****cumbia! That was unexpectable. Downtempo, with sweet horn line, clavé. Nice lounge-exotica flute solo.
10. 3:28 *guitars intro, midtempo, relaxed, swingy. A bit smooth-jazzy. Almost a minute of slow fade at the end.