Album: Portico Quartet, Isla (Real World)

Reviewed,Phil Johnson
Sunday 18 October 2009 00:00 BST
Comments

Forget the ex-buskers' Mercury-nominated debut. With Isla, produced by John Leckie, Portico have found their mojo: a thrumming, intensely textured and dynamic sound flowing between sax, bass, drums and hang. (Looks like a wok, sounds like a steel drum.)

The subtle electronic shadowing and beefed-up bass recall EST, while the lead sax traces a Balkan/ Gypsy line and repetitious rhythmic measures reference Reichian minimalism without making you feel ill. All tracks are memorable and hang together like a suite. Brilliant.

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