Altsounds - Drum Dynasty - Mystic Sunrise/Dark Continent [Album]

I was intrigued by this double CD from Drum Dynasty. Intrigued because I am a lapsed (to some extent) drummer, intrigued because although I am a drummer, I have seen very few drum solos that haven't bored me to tears after the first three minutes. OK, so Neil Peart's Solo, from Rush, made me feel totally inadequate as a drummer, and Cozy Powell's solos, well, they were packed full of energy, volume and pyrotechnics! Apart from those though even some of my favourite drummers have taken their solo on for too long. Why would I possibly want to listen to two whole CD's full of drums? The first thing I did was check their MySpace page, and I liked what I heard. Reading the information contained on the page, they claim to sound like Terry Bozio, Peter Gabriel, Steve Smith, Vital Information and Tony Williams. Now while I might have heard of Bozio, Smith and Gabriel, I have to admit I am not very familiar with their work.

So after a little research I still got the feeling of uncertainty and I kept wondering what might be in store on 'Mystic Sunrise / Dark Continent'. To be precise there are two very separate CD's in this package. Each is in it's own individual jewel case. One is called 'Mystic Sunrise' and the other 'Dark Continent', and each have 14 tracks. They are both copyright 2009, so whether this is a double album, or a "mini" boxed set is up for debate. Anyway, this is the debut album from Bruce Burgess, Seattle percussionists Arturo Rodriguez, Marco Zonka, and film composer Kevin Christensen.

Disc one is entitled "Mystic Sunrise." The CD opens with the title track, and instantly I detect a middle eastern influence here. There are some interesting polyrhythm's to be heard on "Al Jarr" which build nicely to a climax before the track floats off into the distance. "Anuket (Goddess Of The Nile)" is over 7 minutes long, perhaps a little too long for my liking, but at one point the rhythm seemed to almost become Iron Maiden's "Running Free." I was expecting an epic of biblical proportions in "Dance Of The 7 Veils" it gallops along nicely and I can imagine Solome dancing in front of Herod. The rhythm takes an unexpected turn in the final third of the song, perhaps as the sword comes down on John The Baptist's neck?

There are some understated vocals on 'Mystic Sunrise', none more so than on "Nectar Of Rasa." I wish these had been placed higher in the mix, but they might have distracted from the essence of the CD's rhythms. On this track there is an almost funk, acid house type beat. The time signature is somewhere the other side of Mars as far as I am concerned, I just couldn't work it out (so it's probably really simple). The track progresses into what might be described as a long solo. As I have said, I am not really a fan of drummers massaging their ego to the detriment of a band's performance as a whole, but there is enough in this sound-scape to hold my interest. If the vocals should have been up in the mix for the previous track, they are certainly in the front seat at the beginning of "Masalama", the final track on this disc. A position which they hold for the duration. There is a refreshing wash of synths and the percussion takes a back seat really on this one.

Putting the second CD called 'Dark Continent' into the player, the opening and title track of the CD opens with "Bird Song," it sounds like they have gone into the rain forest somewhere, because there is a distinct tropical tone to this dawn chorus. Then the synths cut in, and if I was fearing a collection of acoustic drum solos, the fears
quickly vanish. Flutes and various forms of hand percussion lay down a rich sound-scape, beautifully mixed with appropriate consideration for the instrument's placement within the stereo field. Actually, we have a 16.4 Ambisonics Studio at University. This is a ring of 8 speakers on the floor with another 8 speakers above head height and 4 sub-woofers in the corners. The idea is to make the sounds seem as if they are going round your head and out through the window. I think the material on this work would be ideal as you could make it sound like you are sat in the middle of all these instruments. In fact "Dark Continent" has given me an idea for my final year project next year. But I digress.

The sounds on this second disk are different from the first disk, here, the rhythms are more tribal. If you are waiting for a thrash around the kit you will be disappointed. However, "Hemiola" is close, at two and a half minutes, it's not too long and it doesn't get boring. This is world music, and this is not your average rock drummer show-boating. With the title, as you might expect, the percussive sounds are to the fore, but there is a myriad of exotic sounds. "Warfare" for example has the rhythms washing over the sounds of a bustling market place in Africa. "Voodoo Rain" has an atmospheric, dark rhythm and vocals mixed with a blend of hand drums and xylophone's, all topped of by sinister synths. At close to six minutes it's the longest track on the CD, but as the song progresses it maintains its interest.

Interestingly, the next track is I suspect Neil Peart inspired. On Neil's "Anatomy of a Drum Solo" DVD he explores the idea of playing one time signature with the feet, and a different one with the hands. Yeah right Neil, thanks! Here it is though, there is the 3/4 Bum, chit, chit on the feet with all sorts of different time signatures layered over it with the hands. Oh dear! This track is over 5 minutes long too, but holds my attention throughout, making my drumming ability feel even more inadequate by the second.

Having a film composer working on this project, it is no big surprise to feel that each and every one of the 28 songs featured across these two CDs would lend themselves perfectly to the score of a film. Although I am not new to the "World Music" genre, I have not listened to it extensively. Not only have these CDs made me want more, it has made me want to go to the Music Port Festival in Bridlington, the UK's biggest indoor world music festival. Moreover, this material has inspired me, and who knows, I might pick up a pair of sticks for the first time in over a year. Of course whether my inspiration can be matched by my talent behind the drum kit is an entirely different monkey.

This is a collection of music that every drummer/percussionist should own as it is not only inspiring, but it will make you realize that drums are just as valid instrumentally as guitar, keyboards or violin.