Let me start off by saying that I appreciate Avant-Garde as an art form. Some of my favorite plays and movies are steeped in that genre. OGOGO makes no bones about what they are. Avant-Garde in the classic sense without any nods to free form jazz or house soundscapes. Mixing both electric and acoustic voices, Rodney Oakes expands the boundaries of trombone by MIDI enabling it while Igor Grigoriev matches Oakes' pallete with guitar. What I like is that through the chaos and randomness, Redux maintains thematic and aural bindings that actually make the pieces cohesive.
The immediate stand out piece is their OGOGO serenade (movements I-V). Specter-like trombone lays the background for a lonely voice in the storm while "atonal" guitar spits and spatters give the movement rhythm. "Four Super Models" manages to bring about the flavor of a fashion show runway and the pretense that goes along with it. Commercial pop references almost ebb and flow throughout giving it a deja vu feel. "Chocolate Bar" is similar in infusing bytes of familiarity on top of an electronic back beat. My favorite track is "Jewel Encrusted Eyeball." Spastic guitar fights it's way through MIDI synth pads and atmosphere that make this an eerie and disturbing piece.
OGOGO's Redux was refreshing to listen to as I avoid anything labeled a genre as if the listener couldn't figure that on their owm. Take a risk, go on adventure, OGOGO will take you there – no foul, no harm.
Track List:
1. Lunch On the Peacock
2. Rudimentary Celtic
3. Ogogo Serenade Mov. I
4. Ogogo Serenade Mov. II
5. Ogogo Serenade Mov. III
6. Ogogo Serenade Mov. IV
7. Ogogo Serenade Mov. V
8. Four Supermodels
9. Bikini Scientist
10. Significant
11. Chocolate Bar
12. Religious Symbol
13. Jewel Encrusted Eyeball
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