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CD Review
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Knoxville News-Sentinel, CD Review >>
No matter what direction Warsaw Village Band takes on "Infinity," the group ends up in an alternate universe.
Or at least that's how it might seem to non-Polish-speaking Americans.
The act's intention is to combine past with present, and even if it all sounds unfamiliar, there's clear diversity from track to track.
"Infinity" comes on too strong with opener "Wise Kid Song," a flurry of strings and excitable voices initiating momentum that can't be sustained - and indeed, the track implodes mid-song and then has to regain its footing.
From there, band leaders Maja Kleszcz (vocals, cello) and Wojtek Krazak (multiple instruments) lead the group on a wily journey that includes the penetrating soul and klezmer-flavored nuance of "1.5 h" and the rowdy, stirring instrumental "Polka Story" powered by Maciej Szajkowski's frame drum.
Warsaw Village Band ventures farther beyond the Polish realm elsewhere. The pan-African inflections of the traditional work song "Is Anybody There?" create hypnosis, and the "Slavic raga" cut "Cirlce No. 1" is likewise mesmerizing. Meanwhile, the languid, feminine swirl of "Heartbeat" has a vaguely R&B air to the vocal arrangement, and "Polska Fran Polska" is texturized by the Swedish nyckelharpa.
Yet even when the release shades in modern influences - ranging from DJ Feel-X's guest appearance on "Skip Funk" and guest vocals on "Little Baby Blues" that are allegedly an homage to James Brown - the result is still decidedly alien, albeit compelling.
"Infinity" isn't world music so much as it's otherworld music.
Rating: 4/5
-- Chuck Campbell 04/14/09 >> go there
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