Black Bombaim ‘Far Out’ LP/DD 2014
Far out, into the wild untamed regions of the world, that’s were Portugese psychedelic masterminds Black Bombaim are taking you on their brand new record. They’ve already demonstrated that they are a band that likes to jam and once again that is what they are going to do to you, twice.
Putting their own experiences and meetings on the road into their music, the band displays a good feeling for atmosphere and paints landscapes with sound. Comparisons to similar bands like Earthless, Maserati and Causa Sui are totally justified. A little bit of The Heads or The Machine wouldn’t be far off either when it comes to creating the right vibe. Leeds based label Cardinal Fuzz saw fit to release this record and that is a good thing.
So we are taken to the continent where life as we know it comes from, on the 16 minutes and a bit lasting ‘Africa II‘. The tribal drumming of Paulo Senra forms the backbone of this track, which immediately has soaring guitars that sound as if they’re flaking off from the burning sun, soaring off the savannah. Then the song breaks out, becomes rugged and wild, spiralling, weeping the guitar brings the song to a new level.
When everything gently goes down again, we reach a quiet part and suddenly Rodrigo Amado’s saxophone gives a whole new vibe to the song. Crisp and fresh, the freejazz musician offers a nice counterpart to the fuzzy guitarplay of Ricardo Miranda. The chemistry really comes out here and continues to do so, especially after the tribal drum rhythm is exchanged for the full on finale of the jam. Here the bass of Tojo Rodrigues forms the tight stage on which Miranda and Amado dance in there freefall of playful tunes.
For the second song, the band called in the help from Luis ‘The Astroboy’ Fernandes to help mix and mess up the song with his synthesizer sounds. This time the band takes the listeners to their sonic interpretation of ‘Arabia‘. The air is pierced by the flying tapestry of guitar riffs, shimmering on a laid back rhythm. The rhythm is as the desert sand, shifting, but solid. That rhythm seems to morph into an eastern flow, slowly but surely. The entrancing guitar work adds to that mystique.
The song shifts again, like the sands and a slow dreamy play feels like a Fata Morgana, a vision that is barely real. Going down to a minimal sound and some tremolo guitar play, the song becomes the land, the dreamy heat and the legends. The music is subtle, then wild again. Using all their arsenal to put down another almost 20 minute song that keeps you tied to it. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see these guys on great festivals again in the future, because ‘Far Out‘ is more than just a title for this band.
Label: Cardinal Fuzz Records
Band Links: Official | Facebook | Bandcamp | Twitter
Scribed by: Guido Segers