California trio Evan Fraser, David Satori and Mark Reveley together form Dirtwire, a progressive, acoustically-poetic group who offer up a complex mixture of beats, blues and African, Asian and South American sounds. Their latest offering, Electric River, is an accessible album suitable for certain occasions. Not that it’s a bad thing; this album is fairly intricate with subtleties that can only be picked up with your full, undivided attention.
Speaking about the album, Dirtwire comments, “We have been using psilocybin mushrooms as a tool to open ourselves to other dimensions of sounds and creativity since the first recording Dirtwire ever made. We feel it’s time to tell this story and are very excited to see that there is a change going on in the collective consciousness, in terms of how we relate to plant medicine.”
Album standout “Strength in One” features American singer-songwriter and guitarist Trevor Hall. When you listen to the track, it illustrates the depth of musical maturity that Dirtwire possesses. There are dense layers of rhythm on “Cannonball” that echo Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, among other artists from rock’s pioneering era.
“We have been using psilocybin mushrooms as a tool to open ourselves to other dimensions of sounds and creativity…”
The album was recorded at Boulder Mountain Studio, located at the Boulder Mountain Guest Ranch and owned by Ron Johnson and Brandie Hardman. The studio is nestled deep in the wilderness of southern Utah. Dirtwire says, “At Boulder Mountain studio, we were able to mix on an API 1608 board: it changes the way you balance and EQ everything and definitely changes the sound of the record. There is sonic magic that comes from high-end analog gear, which is pretty undeniable.”
The words ‘Electric’ and ‘River’ combined perfectly paints this album — smooth, dynamic, organic and full of life. Electric River is a diverse, intimate album that will mean something different to everyone.
Purchase or stream ‘Electric River’ album:
Track listing:
- Talking Bird featuring Mbilou & Aya
- Cannonball
- The Eagle And The Condor
- Seem To Freez featuring Emma Lucia
- Datura
- Strength In One featuring Trevor Hall
- Psyloon
- Sabina
- Deep Playa
- Ali
Dirtwire “Cannonball” video:
Links: SoundCloud | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Dirtwire.net | Bandcamp
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Disclaimer: All views presented in this album review are those of the reviewer and not necessarily those of Top Shelf Music.
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