Salon Kingsadore - Mountain Rescue
A quote taken from Salon Kingsadore's myspace page reads; "Salon Kingsadore is an upbeat instrumental combo with points of reference as diverse as surf guitar, jazz, film soundtracks and psychedelic rock."
Salon Kingsdore also describe their sound as psychedelic, surf jazz. Regardless of what genre you put them in, their album Mountain Rescue is fun, sophisticated and musically sound. It has the flow and energy of an impromptu jam session but with a precision that shows their skill and talent.
The first track, Jump Cut, grabs your attention with its upbeat sound. There's a lot going on and one solo leads into another. Lunch with Jan Hammer is quirky and has a manic beat whereas The Gold Stereo is more chilled out. It has more of a jazz lounge feel to it. Cocky Over-Confident Cocaine Border Crossing for the name alone is intriguing. It's reminiscent of a lot of old cop show theme songs.
Mountain Rescue, the title track, is one of the more jazzy numbers on the album. It makes you feel like you are in a jazz bar, listening to them live.
Frantic Underwater Sequence, like Lunch with Jan Hammer, is quirky and upbeat, or frantic as the name so aptly suggests. The album goes from that, to the crawling, minimalist sounds of Floating on the Nile. Straight after that, however, we are back with another high energy offering in High Orbit Catastrophe. The album goes from high energy to low, and then back again, in a way that is neither jarring nor out of place. In fact it serves to make this instrumental album all the more interesting. They manage to retain the listener's ear throughout the thirteen tracks, not only through the quality of the songs but through the constant 'change up' of tempo, style and even genre. This album kept me guessing as to what the next song would deliver.
Spear Gun, Scuba Tank, Explosion finishes out the album and serves as a nice little summary of all that has gone before, showcasing Salon Kingsadore's skill, talent, sensibilities and fun.
Reviewed for Amplifier by Jo Tindling
