Tatvamasi - Haldur Bildur (2019)

Tatvamasi

Tomasz Piątek - tenor saxophone
Grzegorz Lesiak - guitar
Jan Michalec - trumpet
Łukasz Downar - bass
Krzysztof Redas - drums
and guests

Haldur Bildur



AUDIO CAVE 2019/010

By Adam Baruch

This is the fifth album by Polish quartet Tatvamasi, led by guitarist/composer Grzegorz Lesiak, which also includes saxophonist Tomasz Piątek, bassist Lukasz Downar and drummer Krzysztof Redas. On this album the quartet is expanded to a septet with the addition of violinist Anna Witkowska-Piątek, cellist Małgorzata Pietroń and trumpeter Jan Michalec (all three participated on earlier albums of the quartet). The album presents just four extended tracks, all composed by Lesiak.

As usual with Tatvamasi's music, it manages to stay beyond conventional categorization, which is obviously its strength and magic. These long expanded sonic vistas are explorations of melodic themes, riffs, groove, beat and World Music influences, completely intertwined within each other. The best strategy is simply to let go of any attempt of analyzing this music intellectually and let it take you wherever it goes by itself, trusting the musicians submissively. The music is considerably less Avant-Garde oriented this time (except for the last piece), with way more melodic contents, which obviously serves the group's ability to communicate with the listener.

Whereas the previous album by Tatvamasi ("Amor Fati") left me somewhat cold/confused, they returned with vengeance this time producing a condensed, fully focused and better recorded piece of superb music, which takes no prisoners. The strings are this time completely integrated within the fabric of the group's sound and add another important dimension. Michalec, who already appeared on two earlier albums by the group, seems to be an integral part of the improvising tour de force.

Overall this is an excellent album, probably the group's best offering to date, which finds the group in top form and takes the listener on a hypnotic and unstoppable ride through a kaleidoscope of sounds, rhythms and melodies, which are continuously changing and chasing one development after another and yet manage to stay focused and coherent for the entire duration. Regardless if you are into Rock, Prog, Jazz or Fusion, this album offers plenty of all of those and more. Hats off!