Tamarind Winds has to be the best album of 2022 for me to get lost in. Composer and friend of the blog Jeff Gburek continues to awe with the magic he imbues in each instrument he touches, spinning haunting drones, field recordings and soothing the senses with his rebab. From his Bandcamp site:
Various parts of the traditional Javanese rebab are made of tamarind wood, hence the flavor, the aromatic suggestion of the title. These are spontaneous compositions, duets and trios created in thye studio among me, myself and I. There are no effects or plug-ins used other than reverb chosen for one setting for each live recording session. Two songs are left raw in the spirit of ancient field recordings. Some musical figures may seem to repeat as if looped but they are imbal, hocketiing, call and response techniques, created interactivelty in the dubbing process. The occasion for the album was a series of rehearsals undertaken to get back into shape to record the rebab with Orphan Sound System for an album due next year, which seems to be going well. Hope you enjoy the music and are off to a relaxing summer of 2022. Peace.
It’s cliché to say that Gburek makes otherworldly sounds, but for the life of me, I cannot find another set of words to express what effect this album has had on my ears.