Circadian Rhythm Kings: Circadian Rhythm Kings/Three Thirty Four

A regularly used time reference in this editor's house is 3:15. It's used to denote anything unheard, misheard or not wanted to be listened to—"Can you fetch the milk?" "Quarter past three." "Turn that music down!" "3:15." "Are you going crazy?" "3:15..." so Circadian Rhythm King's album Three Thirty Four is that more or less crazy?

It's more! It's "Ya Ya Crazy Music" that's what it is. Full body warm-up music, firing on all cylinders, fake or shake it, it doesn't matter, the energy is intelligent progressive, the avant is on guard and the vibe is smiling. None too heavy this 'Free Jazz' variant, courtesy of Todd Brunel's funk loving band of acers.

"Ribbit" starts pure and pretty, with a sweet flute solo to set a mystical and mysterious sonic dream, accompanied by some floating sax wisping in and out of clarinets and more saxophones until the conversation starts getting a tad raucous. Clarinets take over with drums, bass and percussion to walk the troublemakers out to the green room. They all come back, friends again, for an encore...it's one of those wish-it-didn't end tunes.

"Two If By Sea" a short tune, eerie and ethereal that sounds as bleak as a beach on a winter's morning, a bittersweet skit on the classic Prokofiev "Lieutenant Kije."

"Sashes to Sashes" and "Zippity And The Mystic Avengers At Dawn," describe the album overall. The later evoking some naughty, you-know-you-want-to smiles from the afterlife, courtesy of a jolly clarinet melody... where being dead doesn't sound so bad, a place with brushes that have a linger to them that make Dali's Persistence of Memory seem like a bad paint job. A racing bass line unites the clarinet and sax for an exciting mid-section. Saxophone brings the proceedings back to Earth and spins the band around a few whirls to remind them of the meaning of free funk.

"It's My Phone" has some fine clarinet playing interfered with by cowbell, love it or hate it. "Experience," has something to do with the number nine... perhaps the last life of a jazz cat, and why the tune sounds like the end is in sight. This album is quite possibly the best way of expressing death eight times over, if you believe in those kind of things...

The Circadian Rhythm Kings album Three Thirty Four is an escape album for days when free jazz of all kinds seems, to the straight-talking gin drinker, "pointlessly serious."