CAVALCADE

Sometimes life just seems unfair, especially in the roughshod world of the music industry, even including its more modern indie niche markets . Bands come and go and some slog it out for decades hoping to hit their stride but never really gather more than a small loyal following. And then there are those bands that just seem to manifest a magic mojo that seems inhuman, the kind that exudes as a certain magnetism strong enough to overpower Magneto and like a rocket booster exhibit an uncanny ability to cut through the lines right out of the gate and strike a chord with the public in a seemingly instant connection with the world at large.

Such is the case of the London based BLACK MIDI who like many modern artists has a punctuation fetish and prefers to sport its moniker in the lower case and in such humility blurs the distinction between genres, fills the cracks in between and gleefully struts their idiosyncratic mashup of sounds without regard to the pigeonholing prospects of the music genre nazis. With a moniker that refers to a music genre that consists of compositions that use MIDI files to create scores containing a seemingly infinite number of notes all squished together like a rush hour subway train, BLACK MIDI in more than one way lives up to its moniker by adopting a similar approach with seemingly incompatible bed fellows existing in hitherto unthinkable cooperative efforts.

With genre defying leaps of faith BLACK MIDI burst onto the scene with 2019's "Schlagenheim" which displayed a seemingly distinct group of seasoned musicians who dexterously walked the razor's edge between the nonchalant detachment of no wave and the more intricate nerdy exhibitionism of math rock and post-hardcore. With virtuosic displays of frantic swells of distorted noise and irregular rhythmic oscillations, BLACK MIDI proved it was a cut above the grade with its abstract yet tangible emotive connective tissue that somehow latched onto that magic mojo that all artists strive to achieve but few actually succeed in conjuring into existence. And to top it off this was all the works of a group of wily teenagers barely out of high school. While all fine and dandy, nobody probably thought much about exactly where BLACK MIDI would go next in today's on again off again musical world.

Come 2021, a mere two years after the debut and BLACK MIDI are back with the jaw-dropping evolution that catapults the band's eccentricities into the stratosphere in the form of CAVALCADE, a densely packaged sonic attack that builds upon what came before but expands its tentacles in about every possible direction. Building upon the noisy math rock underpinnings of "Schagenheim," CAVALCADE injects a fiery infusion of jangled jazz sensibilities, ethereal post-rock and most importantly the jittery sonic terrain of avant-prog time signature workouts that would make classic prog stalwarts such as Yes or Gentle Giant gladly hand over the baton. Within this sonic maelstrom of a mere eight tracks BLACK MIDI unleashed one of the most intricately designed scores of the modern era that somehow simultaneously follows and breaks all the rules.

CAVALCADE seems to have everything going for it as it juggles technical wizardry, rhythmic opulence and cryptic psychedelic abstractness. Add to that a strong front man in the form of Geordie Greep whose grizzled vocal style belies his short time on the planet. Like many of these newer bands that have grown up in the on demand internet age, BLACK MIDI seems to have mastered the art of consciousness streaming where all the files of music samples tucked away in the gray matter just pour out in an organic flow of creativity in a place where such disparate musical experiences have fermented into a new elixir of sonic perspectives. It's utterly amazing how well CAVALCADE flows from the opening avant-prog infused "John L" through the surreal and psychedelic mid-section with tracks like "Diamond Stuff" to the orchestral grand finale of "Ascending Forth."

Even for hardened music lovers who have indulged in pretty much every genre under the sun, CAVALCADE will come as a slap in the face and a pleasant reprieve from the regularly scheduled program. Laced with everything from brutal prog angst to theatrical atmospheric orchestrations, CAVALCADE excels in its attention to detail laid out with an amazingly diverse soundscape including but not limited to the changing of vocal duties between guitarist Geordie Geep and bassist Cameron Picton. Imagine if you will, the rock in opposition sensibilities of Henry Cow, the early 70s jazz-fusion aspirations of Miles Davis and the post-rock steadiness of Tortoise all thrown in the cauldron with DNA inspired no wave and math rock vortexes of Slint or Ruins and you're on the right track. Gracefully indulgent and cleverly crafted, CAVALCADE is a truly amazingly unique album that showcases a wildly interesting band just getting warmed up! So far my pick for best album of 2021 bar none.

This album has honestly sent a shockwave through my listening rotation. When it surprise released on streaming two days early, I listened to it three times in a row with no sort of break in between the repeats. In fact, I only stopped because I had to go to work. I couldn't tell you a single new release in my time as a music fan that has mesmerized and grabbed me right from the get go like Cavalcade did. And with each successive listen, I've only grown to love it more and more. To really drive the point home, it's made me reconsider the albums I've given 5 stars to in the past few years. Because honestly, this is the first time since Wobbler's 'From Silence to Somewhere' in 2017 I've been 100% confident giving out an elusive 5 star rating. I had one last year, but the incredibly high bar this has set has handedly bumped that down to 4 stars. This album just has everything, it's somewhat of an off the wall melting pot of everything that has made prog cool in the last 50 years. However, this is by no means a retro prog album. This is an album that could only have come out in the 2020s, and furthermore, this is distinctly a black midi album. You have these chaotic, abrasive and schizophrenic sections of music where everyone is perfectly in tune with one another. But on the other hand, you'll have these gorgeously textured and melodic softer passages that offer a nice contrast within the music and somewhat of a moment of clarity to the constant wall of mayhem black midi often fires at you. I think RIO/Avant Prog is the best fit for this style of music, but you're also going to find elements of Math Rock, Post Rock, Noise Rock and even Jazz Rock in the mix. I also have to give a special nod to the vocals. The singer uses so many vocal deliveries and uses his considerably deep voice to its fullest potential. Whether he's speaking, whispering, singing, or even shouting, it's indistinguishably him. For the first time as a fan of the genre, I feel like I'm actually present for the release of a milestone album, one of the greats even. I cannot recommend this album enough for those of you who want a greater emphasis on the "progressive" part of the progressive rock label. Especially those of you with a knack for bands like King Crimson, Henry Cow and Magma. This album has such a masterful flow between songs as well. All the songs in one way or another fade or transition into the next. Yet, all the songs standalone as great works even without the context of what came before or after it. Now, let's get into the music.

John L takes off running from the get-go with a frantic violin riff somewhat reminiscent of Gentle Giant, perhaps with a little more noise than our gentle brethren would typically produce. The disorienting spoken word vocals come in telling the story of John Fifty, L is the roman numeral for fifty, as it turns out. This track makes a very interesting use of stop-and-go mechanics and silence. The music will come to a screeching stop at multiple points and suddenly turn back on like a light as if nothing ever happened. The whole track grows more and more unsettling as it goes on with multiple dissonant guitar leads coming. My favorite shift of which has to be at 2:18 where it introduces this cool off-kilter groove, it's not entirely clear where exactly it's taking you but they just roll with it and somehow, a sweet drum groove kicks in and the story continues. The track actually fakes you out in the end, making you think its come to its finish just for it to kick back into dissonant black midi hell. Marlene Dietrich actually caught me off guard after the opening track as well as some of the other singles that were released before the album. It's a very heartfelt and pretty track with a much more dramatic and comparatively melodic vocal delivery. The strings add a nice texture and delicate atmosphere to what's already a considerably laid back song. The next track, Chondromalacia Patella, is in contention for my favorite on the album and it strongly emphasizes everything I love about this album in a single song. It opens with a high energy and eccentric groove with this sleek saxophone part over it. After some screaming, it abruptly kicks into another equally driving groove with some really well developed drumming, which is a bit of a constant throughout this album. I love some of the soft piano flourishes in here, something I only picked up on upon repeated listens. The vocals start out very light here, at 1:40 it's like the song hits a smooth landing as it transitions into this outrageously gorgeous passage of music that comes back again around 2:25. Some of these softer moments make up my favorite sections of the album, this one in particular is such a refreshing moment to take a breath or stretch your legs before the intensity kicks back in, now coming through even stronger and noisier than before. The final 90 seconds of this track is just perfection, ending with a simply powerful playout properly leading into the track 'Slow,' which I think goes quite hand in hand with Chondromalacia Patella.

On both Slow and the following track Diamond Stuff, the bands mastery of build-ups and subtleties are on full display. Not only in the vocals which grow from a mere whisper to a mighty shout, but also in the actual dynamics of the instruments which show off a brilliant range. Sometimes the band will come through very quietly as a collective like they do at 2:20 giving off somewhat of a lukewarm introspective vibe. However, they never fail to contrast that with an equally harsh and fierce passage like they do with the unnerving main hook at 3:24. I love the saxophone solo that comes through at the end of this track as well. This track is interesting in the fact that it keeps up a similar tempo and cadence throughout. However, through its use of dynamics and rhythmic variation, it never comes off as one note or disinteresting. Diamond Stuff is one of the lengthier tracks as well as one of the more Post-Rock sounding songs on the album. It has an eerie starless like build-up for the first few minutes with these bass notes that are getting detuned as they're played as the band throws in all sorts of small but engaging details around this base they've laid out. This is a real slow burner of a track that ultimately reaches one of the highest peaks on this record. Around the halfway mark, these jazzy drums begin to introduce themselves not long before some stunning and uplifting strings do the same. The production really shines here, as many of the sounds that come through can only be described by myself as transcending. This is another one of those softer moments on the album that almost get me pretty emotional with it's sheer beauty.

The next two tracks once again go hand-in-hand with each other and display some of the heaviest moments on the album. Dethroned leads it off with one of my favorite drum grooves across the whole record acting as the backbone for this song. I love the use of distortion as well as the rhythmic use of palm muting in the first chunk of this song. At 2:45 things settle down as the band introduces this really unique and energetic guitar riff that properly builds us right back into a real headbanging and heavy passage of music. It's just so sick start to finish. It brings us right into Hogwash and Balderdash with its alarming percussive intro. Despite being the shortest track on the album, it stands tall once again as one of the heaviest and perhaps most immediate songs on the record bringing back some of that John L energy in the vocals. I love the dark and quirky acoustic guitar breaks they interject into the song. This song ends with one of the loudest and most crushing finales of any of the songs here, and that makes its transition into Ascending Forth all the more satisfying. Ascending Forth is the other track in contention for my favorite on the record. It's the longest track at just shy of 10-minutes, and I'd argue it's the most different and stylistically removed from the other songs. Much of the track is acoustic and clean guitar led, and I almost get some Genesis vibes in the first parts of the song. The chord progressions and actual playing is jaw-droppingly gorgeous. The vocalist brings back that intimate, expressive and somewhat dramatic delivery once more on this track using it to an even greater extent if you ask me. The band really breathes so much life into this track, the individual playing is so organic and in-tune with each other instrument. The band takes you through many peaks and valleys, it's really the vocals that are leading the charge many times. There's just so much replay value especially on this track as for the entirety of the runtime there's small little details, whether it be strings, a random clean guitar part, harmonics, piano, there's just so much to cling on to and pay your attention to at any given moment. The climax of this track is massive and it sends chills throughout my whole body. You really just have to listen to it, Ascending Forth takes you on a journey and the payoff in the final couple minutes is pure emotional bliss.

There's not even any glimpse of a shadow of a doubt that this is anything less than 5 stars. I'd give this 6 stars if I could. I've been over the moon with how many really good releases 2021 has had already. However, this has come in and pretty easily stomped on everything else I've listened to this year. This is a masterpiece, one of the best new albums I've heard in years. There's no semblance of dull moment to be found here, this band is the future of the genre.

10/10

Well, if my interest in Black Midi wasn't piqued before (it was), then it sure is now after seeing what they did here. Obviously not content with boxing themselves into one particular sound, the band straight up ditches a lot of the core elements of their debut and instead decides to make a completely full-on avant-prog album. What makes this even better is that despite leaving most of the post hardcore and punk influence and having a few other huge differences, the core identity here feels very much in line with their other output. This is especially true in how frantic and anxious it still manages to sound at times, less being chaotic for the sake of it, and more using that to heighten the almost panicked vibe that the crazier moments of this tend to have. This is not to say that I think this is an amazing album either however, as I actually prefer Schlagenheim for reasons I'll shortly get into, it's just that even so, it's really cool what they did here and ends up making the band even more fascinating.

The album immediately shows that this direction can be something truly special with John L, the band's best song so far. Everything about this is frankly insane, with the dense, repetitive string arrangements regularly falling apart as layers upon layers of insanity are added to the mix. This really doesn't sit still for even a moment, whether it's moments of atonal piano being thrown around, the tempo rapidly increasing, or the tense breakdown that leads back into the driving force of the song, and it all serves to throw the listener for a loop time and time again. Marlene Dietrich is unfortunately nothing too special, but represents the versatility brought to the table with the vastly different sound palette here. Hearing such a soft, lush track hits the point of being a bit surreal when you consider basically everything the band did before this, even if the song itself feels rather underdeveloped. These first 2 tracks also demonstrate another huge change this album presents, Greep's vocals performance. The intense, crazy stuff feels considerably more subdued and restrained without losing that goofy character of such a performance, preventing it all from getting annoying and having the classic Black Midi charm. His softer singing is also interesting in how soothing, melodic and expressive it is, really lovely stuff, with both styles overall creating a wonderful contrast and contributing further to the unique flavour of Cavalcade.

For as unique and interesting as I find the changes made here, I can't really say that I'm too sold on some of this even after a handful of listens, especially the quieter moments. Both Diamond Stuff and Ascending Forth totally miss the mark for me, and this is largely due to the fact that they start going in interesting directions too little too late. While both of these have some gorgeous, passionate sections in them, to get there you'll need to listen to a lot of repetition until things suddenly pick up. This is a similar issue that I had at times with Schlagenheim, but the key difference is that in the case of Cavalcade, these bits don't really carry any sort of drive on their own, making it just feel as if it's meandering and just waiting around for something else to swoop in and pick things up. The repetition unfortunately also finds itself on one of the other fast paced, chaotic songs, Hogwash and Balderdash as well. While the first 30 seconds or so throw a lot at the wall and go all over the place in some fun ways, before long these components keep getting repeated in such a way that its sense of spontaneous energy gets killed and makes it feel quite predictable.

I personally also take issue with the production and mixing of the album, because there's a sense of inconsistency to it, but with the common thread of elements sounding totally buried in the mix to the point where things can often be indistinguishable. While this sometimes leads to making the album feels chaotic and dense, such as with John L, but it often makes things sound far less intense than they by all rights should. This is especially problematic with Dethroned, which has a lot of stuff going on, but all the vocal-oriented parts in it are so horribly muted by the fact that you can barely hear the vocals underneath the 80 layers of other stuff going on, despite the fact that the song still manages to be quite entertaining despite this. The production also prevents a lot of the nuances and intricacies in these compositions from coming through, a problem that plagues even most of the best material here, such as Slow. While I still find this song to be excellent, a lot of the more technical moments never feel as if they have enough emphasis placed on them due to the way they're often barely audible unless you're paying close attention, the focus often being drawn to everything else going on and making it feel a bit directionless. With a couple of tweaks along with making a couple more of these crazier moments stand out that bit more, this would be an album with 2 perfect masterpieces on it instead of just the 1. Either way it's a fantastic song, but it's also a testament to the fact that even most of the best tracks here have some issues that feel difficult to overlook. Another problem is how quite a few of these songs just end in a fairly unceremonious or sudden way, which makes a lot of this disappointing just due to the way that they can almost sound incomplete.

Despite these complaints, one big thing I'll give the album a lot of credit for is the way that almost every song has some moments that are ridiculously good, which ends up giving the majority of them some appeal even if they're often marred by my aforementioned problems. This also sums up my feelings about Cavalcade as a whole, definitely has some appeal despite having numerous qualities of it that I feel are extremely flawed. Black Midi with their current output essentially represent vast potential to me, I haven't fallen in love with either of their albums, and yet, I still consider them to be an extremely promising band that I'll continue to intently follow. If anything, despite liking it less, Cavalcade solidifies a lot of these thoughts on the band for me, as it hasn't just brought another masterpiece song to the table, it also demonstrates remarkable versatility and the ability to retain the band's identity even with such a left turn being brought to the table. Cannot wait to see where the band goes from here, I have confidence that it will be great.

Best tracks: John L, Chondromalacia Patella, Slow

Weakest tracks: Marlene Deitrich, Diamond Stuff, Hogwash and Balderdash

So, here's the minority report. Tons of praise for this release. Five stars, top release of the year. An essential prog release. Well, not for me. I don't hear why most reviews call this a masterpiece. Noise is an integral part of the music of black midi. Almost the most important part. Shrieking violin and sax, flailing up and down the guitar neck, heavy synth patches, and over-processed spoken words. Not rapped, but spoken. Like a William Shatner or Lou Reed recording.

"John L" has a repetitive string arrangement with someone talking over the music. There are some unsettling parts, some of the piano riffs sound like a three-year-old trying to play, and lots of noise and dissonance. I like dissonance if it's done in a musical way, like Thelonious Monk did. black midi does not do it in a musical way, they do it to create a creepy uneasy feeling. Like music for a horror movie.

"Marlene Dietrich" is a short very poppy sounding song that is a break from the chaos of the first tune, but it's a very forgettable song. Sounds corny, like a bad pop song from the 70's. This song is out of place and does not really fit with anything on the rest of the album.

"Chondromalacia Patella" starts with a Red Hot Chili Peppers funk vibe. The tune moves on and during the one chord breakdown it's accented by an unpleasant shrieking synth noise. Next, the song morphs into a djenty part, and then vocals are added but so low in the mix you can't understand them. More noise, shrieks, and then the song fizzles out with crescendo of noise and ends with a synth bleep.

"Slow" begins with a similar djenty riff from the previous song. There are some passages that are cool, almost jazzy, nice sax solo, and the drummer really cooks on this song. There are more spoken words throughout this song, again barely audible. Maybe they are using the spoken words as enhancement to the noise. Not a bad song, but nothing earth shattering.

"Diamond Stuff", another repeating mellow riff, with the melody line (the odd sounding string instrument) playing mostly one note, meanders along doing not much. More inaudible reverb-soaked spoken words appear about 2'11" into the song. Song continues to drone on until 4'20" then a jazzy interlude takes over combined with multiple vocals drenched in reverb that add nothing but noise. This continues repeating itself till the song ends, two minutes later.

"Dethroned" starts with a sax and a cool drum beat, the bass and guitar come in. The impact of the song is immediately lessened with those awful processed vocal sounds. Again, the lyrics are inaudible to me. At 3'38", the groove changes, great bass line and drumming - the band is cooking, but the noise, spoken words or whatever it is, returns and overwhelms the ending.

"Hogwash and Balderdash" another repetitive groove with spoken words that again are mixed too low to make them intelligible. Hints of Primus and King Crimson. Lots more noise.

"Ascending Forth" begins with an acoustic guitar, sort of a folky tune. The singer actually sings, but I can't say enjoy his voice. Not as much added noise on this song as previously.

Overall, I would say "Slow" and the last two minutes of "Dethroned" are good, but are marred by added noise that takes away my enjoyment of the music. The other tracks do nothing for me, so I can't say this is an essential prog release.

Black Midi's second album is one of the finest releases in the prog-rock niche for the year of 2021, it is a bit strange to say this because is kinda hard to classify it as a prog-rock album because of the HUGE amount of influences that this album has, which makes sense since their description on this site is as an "experimental post-punk avant jazz math rock band", whatever this long sentence means.

All the influences cited earlier can be perceived in this album but this is not what surprises because is because anyone can just imitate the greater ones and consider themselves good for this, what is awesome about this band is the way they put this all together and creates something very unique that could be easily identified as "black midi style". This is accomplished mainly because of the great talent that all musicians show here not only as technician players but as songwriters.

Talking about the general feeling of the album is sort of an "organized generalized chaos", you have what you would expect of a math-rock record, weird tempos and dissonant instruments but they never let the music became "too avant-garde" to the point that turns to be hard to appreciate, these same strange sounds are packed together in a cool post-punk vibe that maintains the listener involved.

The instrumental is awesome and not a single note seems out of place. There are various parts where the album is raided by jazzist saxophones, drums, and bass which adds a nice variation to the album,

Variations it's one of the words that can be most used to describe this album because it constantly shows how versatile this band is and how is musicians know the importance of this to create a good record, in summary, the songs can be break into two types, the more "Chaotic experimental" and the "Calm and ethereal" ones (this is an oversimplification, but is useful). There are 2 songs I could say are the most "math-rockey" and experimental which are Chondromalacia Patella and Dethroned, 3 songs which are more "ethereal" and psychedelic but still have their break to gain a lot of energy (Marlene Dietrich, Slow, Ascending Forth) and the rest of the album kinda mix this two styles but always surprising the listener in the way that this is incorporated.

As I said before this is one of the best albums of the year (maybe THE best) and show us the enormous talent that these guys have (especially because they are only in their 20s), not only I think this is a great start from a fresh new band but that they have the clear potential to deliver us one of the "Essential" records of the site. The band not only quotes the references but works toward becoming one.

Based on the first Black Midi album, a lot of people thought they were going to move in the direction of becoming more of a post-punk band. However, their sophomore album "Cavalcade" absolutely blows all expectations out of the water. The album is a wild journey that combines Tom Waits with 70s Krautrock, brutal avant-prog, math rock, and jazzy melodies. The album is simultaneously much more calculated and organized than their noise rock-style debut, but still sounds incredibly chaotic and intense. From the brutal avant- garde riffs in songs like" John L" and "Chondromalacia Patella", to the much softer, heartfelt sound of "Marlene Dietrich", to the almost jazz fusion-esque complexity of "Diamond Stuff", to the outright chaotic noise rock of "Hogwash and Balderdash", Cavalcade is the freshest album I have heard in a VERY long time, and is quite possibly the most creatively intense album I've seen since David Bowie's Blackstar. Somehow, despite all the stellar moments of the preceding seven tracks, "Ascending Forth" is absolutely the pinnacle of the album, in a way that simultaneously subverts all expectations while fully meeting the precedent set by the rest of the album. I had high expectations for the record given that it is the highest rated album on RYM from this year, and I am very happy to say that it managed to exceed those expectations. Easy 5/5 stars, this is a truly stellar release.

Cavalcade is one of the most refreshing albums I've heard in 2021. I first knew black midi because they used to be extremely hyped up before they released their debut Schlagenheim. I was actually not much of a fan of that album, and to put it best it felt like music that was meant for the interactivity of live performance without the interactivity. However, I loved seeing their live performances. I've been waiting for the right moment for a few months, and I'm incredibly grateful that it came because this album has exceeded any expectations I had for it. Cavalcade is beautifully deranged, and surprisingly refined in its chaos. There are moments that evoke the chamber prog chaos of Univers Zero and Art Zoyd, the aggression and dynamics of King Crimson, and generally a vocal delivery that border between sprechgesang, the low-life personas of Tom Waits, and the hazed delivery from some certain Krautrock bands (mainly thinking of Amon Duul II).

The opening track, John L, is the most like past Black Midi. The incoporation of violin brings me to Starless and Bible Black era King Crimson, specifically the Great Deciever. The most shocking thing to me was the moment of silence that happens at the peak of tension in this song. There's an insane music video for this song, too. The lyricism of John L is ominous and describes a cult leader in a way that is truly poetic and refreshing. The music video is a work of art, featuring an elaborate dance troupe worshipping a monolithThis is immediately contrasted with Marlene Dietrich, which is the first ballad of this record. That's right, this avant-prog album has jazz-rock ballads on it! It's a song constructed conceptually around the titular actress. It's almost an ode to her as well as a character piece and prelude to Ascending Forth

Chrondomalacia Patella is the next song, and also the formal term for knee pain! This song is one of my favorites from this because of how it develops into something so brutally intense by the end. There's a scratchy guitar riff that builds with the intense drum and bass work on this album. The drumming is especially so tight and coordinated to the point it makes the rapid tempo and avant-garde passages feel natural in delivery. The dynamics of black midi as an ensemble are brilliant on this record. The breakdown at the end is insane, and the synthesized noise that ends it is one of those incredibly iconic sound gestures that can only be done once. Bringing back more king crimson comparisons, it reminds me of the transition of Talking Drum into Larks Tongues in Aspic. This song immediately transitions into Slow, which begins with a really intense groove. This song reminds me of In Rainbows radiohead, but it really is something else. The bursts of atmosphere that happen at the peaks of this song are so well executed. The guitar work throughout this album is really remarkable too. In an era where we abuse overdrive and gain, the guitar sounds are often completely clean. In general, I think this album beats schlagenheim just for how good it sounds.

Diamond Stuff takes us into another dynamic break with a tantric and almost ambient introduction. It's extremely beautiful and otherworldly. There's an element of chamber music in this song that gives it a rich array of sounds. The textures on this record are so captivating to my ears because of how they direct your ears between different aesthetics: the cold avant-prog/RIO type of full-ensemble chaos and the jazz and early 1900s influenced culture. At the height of Diamond Stuff this is basically psychedelic post-rock.

The next song is another character piece. Dethroned builds around the anxiety and desperation of defeat in the form of a man who's experiencing an existential crisis after a moment of defeat. Fittingly, this is a very intense song with more spastic riffage. The scratchy and delayed guitar lines are really cool because they built the whole song around it. This is followed by the intense Hogwash and Balderdash, a song framed around two runaway convicts. The lyricism is particularly reminiscant of 80s Tom Waits, especially from songs like Singapore that are chaotic and zany. The drama on these two songs makes for a really engaging listening experience. I think overall, the storytelling and the dynamics are what make this album miles above anything Black Midi has done before.

Ascending Forth is the epic of this album, and feels like a natural conclusion to the themes described in each song. There's so much depth to how they use recurring themes, textures, and in this case, chord progressions with meta- commentary that serves the purpose of its tale and also brings Ascending Forth to the next level. I don't mean to weigh this review down with more useless comparisons, but the fact that this song evokes Genesis for me only serves to prove that this is one of the most well informed and well written albums of this year. It's not trying to be prog, or trying to be retro in any common sense. It evokes pre-rock popular music and combines it with intense avant-garde and even modern classical influences. The drama of Cavalcade is extremely engaging and refined as we hear of all these characters and their downfalls. Unlike a lot of avant-prog music, there are moments here that are legitimately heartwarming and tragic. It's very rare that a band is able to so effectively capture an entire album as a thematic arc through lyricism and dynamicism. More importantly, it doesn't feel like it's grounded in some far off dimension. Cavalcade takes on a lot of early 1900s modernist themes and brings it into the 21st century as a succinct 40-some minute work rather than just an avant-prog album. I think this is easily one of the most exciting, relevant, and frankly interesting developments in the avant-prog, noise rock, and math rock world in quite a while. Whereas some bands never capture their debut again, black midi has essentially spayed their first album by showing their full hand of music making. Even though this review is a bit tentative on my part, I feel like this album will be a stand-by for repeat listening in the future. Without question, I think this is a prog essential!

[Spanish speaker here, sorry for the bad english] It was a great surprise to see that a band like black midi was added to Progarchives. Being one of the best modern bands in the alternative circle with its first album that mixed math rock and post punk-like styles with few tones of prog, the band took the brave decision of making an Avant-garde, full progressive record in 2021. Did this weird and unexpected turn worked? In my opinion, yes, better than most of the modern prog albums of the last years. The path of black midi has always been influenced by prog and avant garde bands like Can and King Crimson, but in this new album they didn't replicate the 70's experimental music, making just another retro prog album. They showed that they are capable of taking this avant garde music in their own terms of making music and through their path of alternative/experimental rock. The magic of this record lies within their capacity of mixing their characteristic sound, chaotic and expressive as only they could play, with the sounds of avant-jazz and sonic experimentation that resembles the best years of Rock in Opposition. A record that sounds both classic and fresh. The album starts with "John L", and it was probably the best way to start this album. Almost like a reimagination of King Crimson's 21st century schizoid man, this song makes a clear path to the album's weirdness, with its jazzy improvisation, the memorable riffs, avantgardish solos and its unpredictability. Marlene Dietrich shows to the listener the most slow and calmed version of black midi, another turn in the sound of the band known for its chaotic performances. Chondromalacia Patella and Slow make a better demostration of their Math rock influences, with riffs that reminds of bands like Battles and Tera Melos, but with a breeze jazz and build up structure that creates the perfect atmosphere and climax in both songs. Diamond Stuff and Dethroned take again a calmer version of black midi, the first one making an ambient atmosphere similar to Pink Floyd's and the second one being more fitting into a classic 70's eclectic prog album like (to give an example) VDGG's Godbluff. Hogwash and Balderdash was probably the most unexpected song to me. This is full avant garde coming from the band. Dissonant jazz riffs, an unnerving bass following the drums, rythmic experimentation and, whatever happens at the end of the song, makes one of the most chaotic and progressive black midi's creations in only two and a half minutes. And with a wonderful experience, taking some of the most atmospheric sounds of the prog of bands like Genesis and early King Crimson, the band ends this album with Ascending Forth, probably one of the most unfitting, yet on of the best songs of this young band. This album is everything that any prog fan would love to listen to. Avant garde, Jazz, Math rock, a little of ambient, a little of post rock. Everything great about prog (And everything that has been done wrong by the contemporary prog bands) is here with an expressive and always refreshing perfomance. This album is probably one of the best prog albums of the last ten years at least. It achieved a sound enjoyable to indie/alternative music fans and to classic prog fans, something that no oher band could make before in this perfect way. And it should leave us a hope in the future bands that could take black midi's sound, and making another return of the elegant yet bold and brave progressive rock. Only time will show how influential this album will be in the form of prog to come.

Though I've been sitting on this album for almost five months, I simply must give it a review; people need to hear and re-hear about this band--the important contribution they're making to music and, in particular, progressive rock music.

There are some who want to question the veracity of the application of the term "progressive rock" to this band and their music. I urge you to see them live--even watch the videos of their live performances--but, if you can, see them live. You will be convinced. Not since seeing King Crimson on the Discipline and Beat tours have I seen such a stage full of virtuosos, each giving their all to each and every second of each and every song. And they're a band member short right now (guitarist/singer/composer Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin is on mental health hiatus)! But, with the addition of a keyboard player (the hardest working, most dynamic performance I've EVER seen from a keyboard artist: Seth worked harder than the drummer!) and the ubiquitous sound of the saxophone (thanks to the amazing Kaidi Akinnibi) as well as the stepping up of rising superstar Cameron Picton, this is a band on fire, on the rise, and punching holes in the Crimsonian/MarsVolta universe of aggressive prog rock.

1. "John L" (5:14) opens like something straight off of THE MARS VOLTA's De-Loused in the Comatorium, but then turns PRIMUS in its vocal performance and dominant low-end sonic range. The odd-tempoed, stop and go music is flawlessly performed despite incredible intricacy and stark periods of absolute silence. Incredible! Then the song begins to slowly but steadily increase in its speed before the staccato structure and piano banging begins. Violin also plays an important role (substituted for by soprano saxophone in concert). Such a great double riff from Geordie to keep us anchored. (9.25/10)

2. "Marlene Dietrich" (2:54) What?! What did I just hear? Smoke-lounge crooning from Geordie Greep? Wow! What versatility and flexibility--not to mention the talent are we being exposed to on this album! Amazing! The strings and slide and acoustic guitars offer such a rich chamber feel. Music does not get much better than this--from any genre or era! We are not worthy! (10/10)

3. "Chondromalacia Patella" (4:49) opens with an abrasive and very odd-tempoed strum of an electric rhyhm guitar before drums and bass chords and saxophone screams join in to punctuate. In the second minute the music settles into a jazzy, Math Rock, KING CRIMSON/AZTEC CAMERA motif over which Geordie sings in his new CASSANDRA WILSON-like low-end crooning voice. In the forth minute, as the music turns full KING CRIMSON, Geordie snaps back into his more theatric tones and cadences--but then the music drives into a continuous upward-building chord progression. In concert, this song was played out into a much longer extended version in which the pulsating saxophone-led screams between vocal sections were responded to antiphonically by the audience. A real audience pleaser and concert highpoint. here in the studio album form, it is a perfect song to illustrate the band's grounding in what are truly progressive rock forms and sounds. I am certain that our hero, the Black Knight, Sir Robert of Fripp, and his arch-nemesis, William of Bruford would both be smiling in accord while listening (or viewing) this one (not to mention the Court Jester, Adrian of Belew, and the master stick-wielder, Tony the Bald). (9.5/10)

4. "Slow" (5:37) an awesome KCRIMSONian baseline structure over which Cameron performs the extraordinary vocal: at first whispering but later screaming at the top of his lungs. Horns/saxes play a key part in the power of this--but there are also some incredibly stark, beautiful jazz guitar passages over which Cameron whisper/sings. (9/10)

5. "Diamond Stuff" (6:21) opening with some simple guitar and bass notes, repeating ad infinitum--like a SCOTT WALKER or JOHN ZORN song (though I believe Cameron is the sensitive whisper-singer)--this gradually expands into an ethereal dream-cinema jazz tune (in he fifth minute!) Beautiful (and quite unexpected)! (9/10)

6. "Dethroned" (5:03) once again Geordie is deceiving us with his crooner voice (somewhat enhanced by effects). This is a song that I've heard performed live and seen/heard on videos of live performances and it always sounds different. On KEXP it was so powerful. Here it is great though much more "controlled." Live last night it got overshadowed by some of the other songs. Those final two minutes of orchestrated cacophony are amazing! (9/10)

7. "Hogwash and Balderdash" (2:33) again, controlled chaos--in a punk way. The lyrics might give it more impact than I'm feeling. (8.5/10)

8. "Ascending Forth" (9:46) a smooth, jazzified love song to ascending fourths--something that, apparently, everybody loves. (I know I do!) Geordie's SCOTT WALKER-like vocal performance is amazing. (Perhaps a lot of black midi's inspiration comes from Scott Walker?) Beautiful Spanish acoustic guitar (Cameron?) provides the sole foundation beneath Geordie's beautiful croon for the first two minutes Then full jazz-fusion band joins in with a MAHAVISHNU ORCHESTRA-kind of effect (and structure). I'm reminded of some of CASSANDRA WILSON's songs-- even down to the tone and timbre of her voice in comparison to that of Geordie Greep. Awesome and powerful. (18/20)

Originally, I did not want to review this album before posting one for Cavalcade's 2019 predecessor, Schlagenheim, but October 12th's concert prompted me thus. While I think that the music catalogued on Cavalcade shows a band moving forward, pushing boundaries--often in unexpected directions--Schlagenheim may have been better for the way it provided the first impression of a new band to the (progressive rock) music scene. But this album is definitely a step forward, a step sealing this band's place in the pantheon of Prog Greats and Last Great Hopes. The next album should be ... amazing.

A-/five stars; a minor masterpiece of progressive rock music and a shining star of what the 21st Century (as well as the first) has to offer Prog World.

I originally decided to pass on this one after reading descriptions of the music but when it finished as the runner up for album of the year on the site here I decided to spend the money. I've spent quite a bit of time with this one and I can certainly appreciate the appeal for Avant fans but I'm just surprised at how popular it seems to be with the masses based on the number of ratings they get on other sites. I mean this is Avant! Like the album cover it's like they tried to cram every idea into a small space and it doesn't work for me. Complex with lots of intricate sounds plus they layer a lot. The vocals are the hardest part, I'm just not a fan. I grew up in the 70's and the many Avant bands who add Disco or those soft easy listening sounds of the 70's to their music can keep it. Just my tastes in music.

The instrumentation listed on the site here is severely lacking. We get trombone, harpsichord, cello and violin(on more than one track) and the liner notes are so detailed with the instruments and I appreciate that and am impressed with what these guys play. The music is often nervous and hyper while the singer is loungey. Again it's hard not to be impressed with the complexity and I've heard they are amazing live.

Two tracks stand out for me and they are smack dab in the middle. "Slow" for the non-invasive vocals and the inventive guitar and check out the sax. "Diamond Stuff" for the quiet start that lasts for close to 4 minutes then it turns noisy as the atmosphere swells which sounds so good as a contrast to what went on before. Tempo picks up too. The closer might have been my third choice but man the vocals early on just sound lame. Same with "Dethroned" the other track that is right there with the other three I've mentioned. Kind of hit and miss but some really good stuff on that one like the guitar before 4 minutes.

So while I'm not the biggest Avant fan I do have 30 plus releases that I value highly and this is not one of them. Good album but not in my top ten for 2021.

I guess this must be a treat for King Crimson, The Mars Volta and whatever avant-garde stuff fans. The thing is... i kinda hate The Mars Volta and this band reminds me of them too much, many times. I feel, and this is just my opinion, that this music is superficially experimental. Nothing that King Crimson -injected with the unbearable high speed hysteria from The Mars Volta- hasn't done before. Technically this should be an excellent album but it was overhyped and it lacks the real creepiness and mystic that many avant-garde albums have. I mean, i could say it's good, because the musicmanship and the production are great, but the listening experience is unpleasant to me. I respect them as musicians but 2 stars seem more adequate in this case.

I mostly find my music through searching tags like 'progressive metal,' 'krautrock,' or 'zeuhl' on Bandcamp, and I've found that's a pretty good way to stay abreast of new releases. Some bands, though, put only low-effort, insufficiently descriptive tags on their Bandcamp pages (if they have a Bandcamp presence, at all), so about once a month, I'll browse through the charts on RateYourMusic and ProgArchives to see if I've missed anything which might fall under the purview of this site.'

The tastes of RYM's prog fans tend to skew in favor of the avant-garde and harsh, so when I saw that (as of writing), that site's #1 record of 2021 so far was an avant-prog release from a band I'd never heard of, my curiosity was piqued. Avant-prog and brutal prog (a yocto-genre often featuring overbearing saxophone and aggressive, obtuse structures) are often hit-or-miss for me. Some of it is really daring and inventive, but a lot of it just strikes my ears as masturbatory weirdness and dissonance for the sake of weirdness and dissonance.

Cavalcade, the second full-length release from London-based band black midi, is an exciting, enthralling album that artfully blends the bizarre and bombastic with the restrained and melodic.

The album opens with 'John L', a track full of Zappa-esque jazzy riffs. The verses prominently feature rubbery bass beneath spoken-word vocals. The vocals were initially somewhat off-putting, but I've come to love them over repeated listens. Crashing piano adds to the sense of chaos as the song builds, and echoing effects on the vocals plunge 'John L' headlong into a swirling fever dream. Piercing violins add a horror film vibe, and this song continues to up the ante throughout its five-minute runtime.

'Marlene Dietrich' goes in completely the opposite direction of its predecessor. This is a light, folk-jazz cut with a laid-back feel to it, and sappy strings are integrated wonderfully.

In contrast, 'Chondromalacia Patella' begins with anxious, jazzy riffing that sounds like a math rock interpretation of mid-'70s King Crimson. The verses are mellow and melodic, though. This track is something of a middle ground between the two preceding songs. It's not as furious and insane as 'John L', but it's not as idyllic as 'Marlene Dietrich', either.

Notes of speedy, anxious jazz continue on 'Slow'. The verses are technical yet subdued. There's a wonderful guitar solo early on that sounds like it's just about to go completely off the tracks, but it manages to hold together. Starting from this song's midpoint, there's a gradual buildup which sounds like it's right off a Birds and Buildings album. Lush keys, assertive saxophone, and otherworldly rhythms converge beautifully.

The next track, 'Diamond Stuff', acts as a breather. Opening with harmonics played on an acoustic guitar plinking out a steady rhythm, embellishments of bass and synth pads add texture. Gently muttered vocals enter around two minutes in, and rich strings join to continue fleshing things out. The song's second half is a lush, dreamy, psychedelic meditation full of deft drumming and murky textures that give the impression of floating.

'Dethroned' begins with pulsing stabs of clean guitar and twisting bass. The music builds in intensity, soon bringing it to black midi's usual realm. The guitars have a post-punk icy, distorted echo to them. The rhythm is herky-jerky, and the song jumps from one idea to the next without feeling disjointed.

'Hogwash and Balderdash' sounds like an updated Cardiacs track with its punk drive, strange percussion, and seemingly disparate ideas which still somehow manage to gel.

Cavalcade closes on the 10-minute 'Ascending Forth'. After opening with gentle acoustic balladry, brass and drums enter, giving this first movement a strong sense of upward movement. Considering some of the madness demonstrated earlier on this record, this is a relatively restrained track. Bass clarinet and saxophone add some great drama, and the transitions between this song's peaks and troughs are sublime.

On this album, black midi have crafted something exciting and original. Cavalcade races by in a blur of jazz, math rock, folk, and more; but it doesn't feel hurried or incomplete. It's the rush of something so engaging and well-crafted, you lose track of time.

Review originally posted here: theeliteextremophile.com/2021/07/19/album-review-black-midi-cavalcade/

Saxophone and keyboards make themselves felt more strongly on the second black midi album, accompanying a sonic shift from the noise-drenched math rock of their debut to an approach which resembles a slightly more math rock/avant-prog take on Mr. Bungle's Disco Volante at points. Unlike some experimental bands, black midi don't stint on the vocals either, with Geordie Greep and Cameron Picton sharing duties with performances which might not be conventionally stunning but certainly help add a lot of feeling to the proceedings, which might be the group's secret weapon. In a subgenre in which technical complexity can sometimes push out atmosphere and emotion, black midi manage to capture a frantic dose of both.