There are iconoclasts and then there’s Elektragaaz and their ilk. The East Coast-based multi-instrumentalist collective doesn’t restrict themselves to a single genre or even instrument. They fearlessly mingle improbable combinations and make them work through talent and foresight while they likewise open themselves up to influences from outside the traditional music realm as well. Even casual music fans will recognize the “callbacks” to video game soundtrack music, among other nods scattered throughout their work.
The latest release from the six piece is the fifth part of the band’s current series. Their EP The Synaesthetic Picture Show Now Playing, Part 5 features six tracks, as well, and while there’s no linear narrative at work here, there’s definitely a general thematic thrust governing the release. Elektragaaz’s songwriting vision believes in incorporating the present, past, and future under a single umbrella, but ultimately it all has a forward-looking slant.
“October’s Child” is full of lightly synthesized dance influences transmuted through Elektragaaz’s peculiar band sensibilities. Newcomers are entitled to wonder, by this point if not sooner, what exactly they’ve gotten themselves into, but answers don’t come easy. Elektragaaz has a close affiliation with New York producer Trebor Lloyd’s City Canyons Productions, but the band’s creative life began elsewhere. Reclusive composer Poppo Redband, otherwise known as Redband, benefits from a wide cast of musicians serving the band’s vision.
Each member has a stage moniker tailored to the band’s theme. Trumpeter Kosmic Kate, Josh Firebow on viola and other strings, bassist Mat Thunder, Kathy Kaos on keyboards, Jas Windstorm’s woodwinds, and Tom Elektron’s guitar create colorful characters for the band’s presentation; their aspirations for a stage show are clear. The relentless onrush of “Manhunter” is wholly appropriate for its title without ever overwhelming listeners. Elektron’s guitar doesn’t ever shut out the other players, but it’s an important reason why this track succeeds. It isn’t difficult imagining this one serving as the soundtrack for some kind of film chase scene.
“Flying Underwater” has a different feel, no question, but never out of place in the larger scheme. It’s a bit risky assigning this label to anything the band does but, for lack of a better one, Elektragaaz takes on an almost ballad-like hue here and elsewhere before the EP’s close. Some say that the songs are highly stylized. There is no doubt that they are, but the material never fails to maintain a convincing stride over the course of the EP.
Understanding nuance is one of their surprising strengths. The nature of the band’s music, even as wide-ranging as it, may suggest to some that a wall of sound treatment is their forte. The finale “Daybreak and Déjà Vu” underlines this as, instead of providing a tidal wave finale for their audience, Elektragaaz feint and serves up arguably their most atmospheric and stylized piece on the EP. It is an outstanding finale for The Synaesthetic Picture Show Now Playing, Part 5, however, that puts a bold exclamation point on their ambition. Sometimes conquering the world doesn’t happen with cannons and explosions. Sometimes it’s an imaginative and unending push that wins the day; if so, Elektragaaz has many more triumphs ahead.
Chadwick Easton