If
you are one of those thousands of Mumbo-Jumbo fans
across the country who have seen them live, danced your socks off,
laughed at all the ad-libbed jokes and partied till you dropped, then
prepare yourself. Their new album Sonic Gumbo leaves out the ad-libs!
What
the album does, with some skill, is not only leave its mark as a lot
of fun but more importantly demonstrates what great writers and
musicians have gathered together in this powerful and tight trio. The
Gumbo of the title is, of course, a very tasty Louisiana mash-up of
stew with vegetables and either meat or shell-fish...and musically,
this is what we get – a fascinating mix of thirteen self-penned
tracks that take us from the up-and-jumping to the
delicate-and-sensitive via, quite literally, The Absurd.
Opening
with a storming wryly-worded crowd-pleaser 'Second Hand Guitar
Dealer', you immediately get a taste of the talent involved in this
production, while Phil Bond flays the whole span of keyboard and
Oliver Carpenter's distinctive mariarchi trumpet soars above it, they
are smartly pushed along by Chris Lomas's defining rhythmic back
line. This is a band where everyone is good and everyone gets a go –
and rightly so.
The
mood changes with 'Sail That Ship' where Carpenter's lyrical growl
works its magic over the top of the most simple and mesmeric piano
and guitar arpeggio riff and then smartly ups the tempo with 'The
Absurd Song' which does exactly what it says on the comic tin...
'Those
Frail Few' is a beautiful and delicate piece about old soldiers
across the world and the arrangement here is sublime with a resonate
accordion counterpointed with some farewell and call-to-arms trumpet.
The lyrics here are crucial and the whole subtle piece is very
reminiscent of Randy Newman in one of his more serious and powerful
moments. 'Rejoice' is a cheery nod to Bobby McFerrin's 'Be Happy',
complete with cheerful whistle and then they all break out into
'Hosedown', an amusing reflection on being old, which is another
opportunity to hear them all at Force 10 being led along by Phil
Bond's rolling and rattling keys...it will be difficult not to throw
away your zimmer frame when this one comes on.......
A
major departure is 'No Devil at The Crossroads' where Oliver's smart
vocals spell out a cynical view of the devil's likely response to
rubbish music - an entertaining piece greatly augmented by his muted
trumpet. 'Taking You Back; is another interesting lyric about
returning to your roots, this time accompanied by an irresistible
reggae beat.
However,
'Hold On' is the unknown constituent in this Gumbo. A trance-like,
mainly instrumental piece, led by an unrelenting bass line, it
is a curious track which, although unlikely to be a live performance
number, is a compulsive listen - full of moving cadences, a vocal
chorus fill and a certain sadness.
The
final tracks, 'Too Many Days' and 'The Final Encore' are straight
back to the no-messing talented stompin' and hollerin'
rockabilly-and-everything-else band who turn up under your window and
refuse to go away until you come out and dance and join in the
chorus.
This
is a wonderful entertaining album, overflowing with tight solid
talent and some terrific insightful song-writing. If you've never
tried high quality gumbo, you don't have to go Louisiana. It's all
here, hot, interesting, full of amazing ingredients, put together by
proper musicians - kick-arse entertainment with many liberal dashes
of flair, humour and originality. Go get.
