Tridruga: Tridruga

Tridruga (pronounced tree-drooga; "three friends") presents Shepik in a novel trio with accordionist Yuri Lemeshev and bass balalaika player Tony Scherr. This very intimate recording (made at Scherr's house) has a living, breathing sense of vitality. The inhalation and exhalation of the accordion help contribute to this feel. While Lemeshev does not take the kind of relatively adventurous solos that Shepik prefers, he is responsible for half the compositions on Tridruga and a lot of the relaxed Euro-cafe feel of the record. Shepik, as usual, performs a masterful balancing act between eastern and western musics—lending sparse accompaniment when necessary, and launching intermittent well-grounded but idiosyncratic solos. Not to be ignored at the bottom end is Scherr's understated work on the bass balalaika, which has a more open, broad-spectrum sound than the usual acoustic bass. Listen to Tridruga over a romantic candlelight dinner, or play it in a tiny espresso bar—this is intimate music, meant to be shared.