Estradasphere

Estradasphere

Passion For Life

Web Of Mimicry

The insatiable minions who make up the always growing Estradasphere peanut gallery ought to be delighted by this live DVD-and-CD package, released on the heels of their Quadropus album and tour. Fans of this powerhouse unit of ultra-eclecticism will be treated to an inside look at how their favorite proponents of the “aural collage” can just make it happen without the usual smoke and mirrors… Whaaaaat? No laptops? No samplers? To those enamored with the recent, ahem, “progress” made in those areas, good old-fashioned musicianship might seem a bit odd. But “odd” hasn’t ever been seen as a bad thing in Estradasphere-land. Consult the DVD for proof; it was shot from a diehard fan’s perspective (and beautifully, we might add). You’ll see all the weird personality quirks as band euphoria trades off with the turbulent demands of excessive musicianship. Various band psychodramas are completely real, but seem more and more like a big joke as they get played out — sometimes making it all the way to the stage! And going on tour just amplifies that kind of thing to the point of no return, which somehow ends up enhancing the music in unique and indescribable ways. The theory at Mimicry is that the key to Estradasphere’s continuing success is that they are a live band first and foremost. Plop in this well-made DVD and see the proof, or throw in the CD and reminisce until their next tour. So you’ll know.

Estradasphere

Quadropus

Web Of Mimicry

***Every band contracts Departure Album Syndrome at some point in their career. With Estradsphere, one has to ask what "departure" could mean for a group who never bothered to establish much of anything about themselves, other than capable and graceful navigation of any musical landscape, and the daily performance of feats unimaginable to most musicians. On Quadropus, the band navigates terrain usually reserved for people who take themselves quite seriously. Who's kidding whom? These guys could eat most of the Downtown pros for breakfast. It's finally evident that the shameless flaunting of the inner-dork that has banished Estradasphere to the annoying joke bin is not by any means the end of the story. Not because the band is ever going to be considered cool or anything pathetic like that, but because how they craft their music has changed into something a lot more listenable. For instance, the ultra-electronic-sounding dub / drum'n'bass of "Dubway" is done entirely a capella. Their version of an old Greek Rembetica song stays pretty true to the original, even through the wall of guitars and double kick drum at the end. "Speck" is a nice and creepy ballad, like Mazzy Star doing a Nino Rota cover. Their ridiculous, Godzilla-sized, demented "funk" song "KKB" sounds like well over a thousand people playing at once. Sheer primal madness. The Bulgarian-influenced, crowd-pleasing "Hardball" is a tight-as-fuck trip down Estradasphere lane, only better than before. Also includes a video for "Body Slam."   Estradasphere Buck Fever (Mimicry - WoMØ8)...

Estradasphere

Buck Fever

Web Of Mimicry

***ESTRADASPHERE's Buck Fever is an album without boundaries. Their music is a fusion of Balkan, Gypsy, black/death metal, throat singing, Latin, surf, rock, jazz, and more. Styles blend, exist in juxtaposition, or undergo penetrating simultaneous exploration. Imagine going to the dentist on the Discovery channel naked. Comprised primarily of saxophone, guitar, violin, bass, drums, and a home studio that gives them opportunity to expand their sound capabilities, Buck Fever incorporates 40 to 80 tracks of instruments on each song. Overkill? Most assuredly, all the better to reach the outer limits of home recording capability. No corner-cutting or loop/sample collage lameness here—the work this five-piece puts in is an unbelievably intensive labor of love, on par with the deep studio obsessiveness of Olivia Tremor Control and Mr. Bungle. Buck Fever makes use of advanced dada-compasition and thick orchestration and improvisation both traditional and forward-reaching, so it's not surprising to find TREY SPRUANCE of MR. BUNGLE making several engineering/production appearances throughout the album.

Estradasphere

It's Understood

Web Of Mimicry

***Applying a philosophy similar to Mr. Bungle or the Secret Chiefs 3, Estradasphere emphasize musical composition and how easy it is to play circles around most of the big name musicians out there. But Tim Harris (violin and trumpet ), drummer Dave Murray, Jason Schimmel (guitar and banjo), bassist Tim Smolens, and John Wooley (saxophone and pennywhistle) are no mere show-offs: with all this extra psychic freedom at their beck and call, Estradasphere explore radical morphings of musical castes, and then explode the bastards with inspired ferocity - a barrage that doesn't degenerate into wank-a-thon territory. Much. When it does it's mysteriously excusable. It's Understood is alive and enchanting - dada and world influences are in abundance, as are beaucoups odd obsessions (with Winger, boy bands, outdated video game themes, black metal and The Days of Our Lives). In fact, the whole situation is deeply menacing, hilarious and absurdist.