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Mostly Other People Do The Killing: Disasters Vol. 1
ByKnowing that fact creates a mental disconnect when listening to this album. The music is fine as Stabinsky's giddy blend of cocktail lounge, gospel and blues piano moves swirls together with Elliott's lurching bass and Shea's knockabout drumming, but the track titles invariably bring up thoughts of the human tragedies that occurred in these incidents. The album's press release tries to make the case that the music partially uses the idea of disasters as a metaphor for the conflicts we endure in everyday life, but the real-world calamities represented in the track titles keep intruding on that. In all those cases, lives were lost and homes destroyed.
It is better then to pay as little attention as possible to the album concept and compositions' titles and concentrate on the music. It is enjoyable as the group adds new wrinkles to its sound through the occasional use of electronics. Synthesized pings invade the scrambling piano of "Three Mile Island" as Stabinsky's playing moves from manic freedom to ragtime to gospel, all within three and a half minutes. "Centralia" is hard-charging boogie rock, "Johnstown" is a quiet bass and piano ballad shot through with spacey electronic whooshes and "Dimock" dances along on a sprightly and swinging piano melody while demonstrating how well Kevin Shea's seemingly random, overbearing drumming fits into the group sound.
This trio version of MOPDTK is very adept at carrying on the lunatic legacy of Misha Mengelberg and the ICP Orchestra. Taken simply for its musical value, their latest is a clever and fun ride. It is best, though, not to think too hard about this album's underlying concept.
Track Listing
Three Mile Island; Exeter; Marcus Hook; Wilkes-Barre; Centralia; Johnstown; Boyertown; Dimock; Wilkes-Barre (alt take).
Personnel
Mostly Other People Do the Killing
band / ensemble / orchestraRon Stabinsky
pianoMoppa Elliott
bassKevin Shea
drumsAdditional Instrumentation
Ron Stabinsky, Kevin Shea: electronics.
Album information
Title: Disasters Vol. 1 | Year Released: 2022 | Record Label: Hot Cup Records
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About Mostly Other People Do the Killing
Instrument: Band / ensemble / orchestra
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