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Hafter Medboe and Anneke Kampman - Places and Spaces (Fabrikant)

4 stars
At first listen, Conquering Animal Sound chanteuse Anneke Kampman's
first sojourn into off-piste collaboration sounds like the straightest
thing she's done. Here she is, singing proper words and everything
alongside seasoned jazz guitarist Medboe and his band who here include
saxophonist Konrad Wisniewski on a suite of songs that seeks to capture
an environmental essence complete with twittering noises off between
songs. Listen harder, and there's a spectral oddity at play throughout
Kampman's coos and Medboe's dexterous and atmospheric picking that
lulls one into a false sense of security before exploding into little
light-and-shade storms. Recalling Trish Keenan in Broadcast or Alison
Statton's post Young Marble Giants trio, Weekend, Medboe keeps the
melody intact while Kampman's rich, glacial voice swoops without fear,
punching out each phrase with a calculated off-kilter precision that
makes for a scarifying pastoral delight in this refreshingly strange
alliance.

The List, January 2013

ends
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