Short Reviews [Richard Pinhas / Barry Cleveland - 2016 - "Mu"]

Electronic music pioneer Richard Pinhas first came to prominence with Heldon, but he has also had a substantial solo career where he often combines forces with different musicians. On this release he co-credits guitarist and innovator Barry Cleveland, but the rhythm section is deservedly mentioned on the cover as they are none other than acclaimed bassist Michael Manring and drummer Celso Alberti. These four instrumentals were all improvised, with one of them more than 25 minutes in length, and the move through jazz and avant garde into areas more often considered to be the realm of space rock but can also drop into ambient. The result is something which does need a few plays before the listener starts to get some sort of understanding of what the quartet are achieving, and it would be very easy indeed to write this off unless one is prepared to do just that. It can be challenging, with all four moving in quite different directions, but Alberto’s dramatic drumming and Manring’s fluid basslines keeps everything together and allows the two leads to experiment. This will not be for everyone, but those who enjoy their music to be anything but mainstream may well find much here to enjoy.