ANCHOR AND BURDEN

It is not a surprise that I start a review of a Markus Reuter project saying an affirmation like that, since he is an amazing creative mind who always gathers with some other extraordinary musicians, artists, humans (or non- humans?). Well, this new Anchor and Burder record takes us into a new journey where there are no boundaries, I mean, Reuter along with Alexander Dowerk, Bernhard Wöstheinrich and Asaf Sirkis create endless sounds, atmospheres and images, which are spread through a musical and emotional trip that invites us to leave our current self and morph into another level of consciousness.

In this 6-track album we will find 66 minutes of dark and somber episodes, raw guitars, heavy passages that are constantly contrasted by soft and peaceful keyboard atmospheres or dreamy and cinematic moods. 'Fractured Self' opens the album and it hits you by surprise, I mean, it has some calm moments but all of a sudden Sirkis hits its drums hard and then Crimsonian strings enter to generate some tension. Moments of uncertainty are felt vividly. Then we can find some kind of Larks Tongues in Aspic references, the two Touch Guitar players intercalate to create a richness of sounds in a raw and acid way, wonderfully accompanied by heavy drums, and amazingly contrasted by spacey keyboard atmospheres.

There are some seconds of quiet and rest, but then the band punches you hard with 'Body Expansion', its introduction is heavy, then they develop different passages where a rollercoaster of emotions can be felt. Is it lunacy? Is it incredulity? You might ask yourself some questions while listening to this quite interesting, however, not easy journey to dig, because sometimes the harmony vanishes, there are some pauses, some shortcuts, but later they hit you again. Later the rhythm changes, drums create a 4/4 base that sounds a bit scary, while strings create those raw and addictive sounds that we might relate with those King Crimson improvs we know. While we are still in awe with the previous sounds, they change a bit and create a much calmer sound, however, the dark atmosphere prevails. The last part of this track is great, with some guitar solos that sound crazy, with a slower (at first) drum rhythm that little by little become ferocious and takes over the journey.

The power reigns when 'Mutual Assured Destruction' starts, I think the title is literal haha since the sounds are capable of destroying our comfort and make us feel new sensations. The musicians and their instruments create a conversation, but then all hail chaos so an explosive and abrasive episode hits us heavily. What I love is that despite chaos, we can perceive where the musicians come from, I mean, Sirkis creates amazing jazzy skills and sounds, Reuter and Dowerk generate proggy and even metal-like riffs and sounds, while Wöstheinrich always keep those cosmic and spacey atmospheres. Love this track.

'Nine Gates to Dominion' continues like a seesaw, with brief calm seconds that open the gates to countless micro- explosions. I love how the musicians understand each other and all together create that chaos in a majestic way. When you think the song will change its structure, they comeback to hit you as heavy as they can, loud and clear, sometimes disturbing, but mostly exciting.

There is an epic named 'Extinction Level', whose 18 minutes might work as metaphors of how we as humans, or our Earth, or our science, are always changing, morphing into new states of consciousness, new eras. It is a long road full of potholes, of contradictions, of never-ending surprises. Musically they gather here all the elements I have mentioned before, so this sole track could be a perfect example of what Anchor and Burden is about, at least in this album. While we embrace constant change, we progress, and I believe this also works for them.

The album finishes with 'The Crust of This Earth', whose use of soundscapes and electronics is amazing. The song has a rich diversity of colors and textures, provided by each and every of the four musicians, and though it is not as heavy as the previous, the sense of tension is kept and spread, however, we can sense some tranquility after all that earlier chaos, which is, naturally, nice.

I'll be curious to know what's next for Anchor and Burden, I hope they keep creating this music with no limits, so we, as listeners, can also feel free.

The result is an album which has gone straight past any musical boundaries, as for them they simply cease to exist. I have not heard the previous releases by this band, although I have long been a fan of both Markus and Asaf and remember reviewing Centrozoon as well, but if they are as compelling as this then I may well need to seek them out. Here we have four musicians who are working on their own, yet combining with the others in a way that no-one knows which path they are going to take, and that very much includes the players themselves. They all need to be listening to the other three, and then deciding what part they can bring to the music and whether they feel a need to move it in a different direction or go with the flow, and not playing is a very important part of this. It is interesting to follow Asaf and his style as one can almost hear his thought processes as he sits back at times and is incredibly complex at others, working hard to ensure he adds and never detracts from what is taking place in the studio.

This is music which will not be appreciated by many, as it is far beyond the norm, and in many ways is Krautrock being reinvented for a new age, yet if you dare then this is well worth discovering.

Wow, this is amazing!

Improvisation is a strong word, in it one could include lots of nous or adjectives such as creativity, freedom, talent, understanding, challenging, different, whatever you want, and though all of us as human beings are capable of improvising things in a daily basis, we don't really adapt improvisation as a true part of our life, we don't even think about it.

But there are people like the prolific Markus Reuter who is used to that word, because it is part of his essence as a musician, as an artist, and this time with the project Anchor and Burden he's gathered with other 3 great musicians to create a one-hour trip with no boundaries that could take you to countless places, that will make you feel several emotions, that will carry loads of information to your nerve cells.

What will you find in this album? It might be difficult to place it under a musical genre, but be sure that once you try it, you'll immerse into your deepest emotions, you'll experiment uncertainty, excitement, anxiety, relief, power, and much more, and though I know each person has a unique experience and might feel different things, I think it is probable you'll find yourself covered by some of the ones I previously mentioned, at least for a moment.

The album has a dark atmosphere almost all the time, important to say that here are no vocals here, it is a completely instrumental record, but that's its charm, they are capable of make you feel lots of emotions with their instruments, they grab your mind and soul and open them, so they can be receptive to embrace those nervous sounds, those chaotic and intense moments that when you least expect it, can be contrasted with peaceful moments.

Of course, it is impossible not to mention two big words: King Crimson. An almost evident reference in this album, and even in Reuter's career, but there are moments when you surely will remember both, the 70s and the 00s eras of KC with these improvisations. Both touch guitar players create a wonderful combo, several textures and nuances that are shared in every track, creating raw sounds that punch you in the chest. Wonderful atmospheric and kosmik backgrounds are created by Wöstheinrich's electronics, while the drums are always proposing and telling you something, you decide how to catch those sounds, those dialogues.

I wanted to give it a shot with a loud sound, and then I listened to it with headphones which is something I always recommend, but this time and though there are for sure some common places, I think the experience could be really different if you let your soul rest for an hour, put those good headphones you've got and let the music take you to another planet. You'll find details that can change your perception, at least for a moment.

So my final advice is that you have to open your mind's gates when you decide to push play to this album, if you do so, I am sure you will have a terrific journey, and will enjoy it as much as I've done it. Congrats to these amazing musicians and to Leonardo Pavkovic for releasing this great album under his unique and precious Moonjune label.

Enjoy it!