bunsenburner is a collective of musicians who comprise Martin Fischer (guitars), Flo Möbes (guitars), Ben Krahl (bass, bass VI, guitars, synths), Philipp Schlotter (guitar, synths) and Norman Lonhard (drums) who defy easy categorisation, known for their approach to music that spans genres from free jazz to extreme metal. With a discography that celebrates improvisation, collaboration, and innovation, bunsenburner continues to push the boundaries of contemporary music, inviting listeners to explore the vast landscapes of sound with an open mind and heart.
Their latest release, `Reverie` was recorded live over four days at huji maja Studios in Freiburg, Germany and offers up themes of letting go of expectations, fears, and constraints. It crosses a rich musical landscape combining combines Sludge, Stoner & Doom Metal with delicate ambient textures, cinematic Spaghetti Western, and bold experimental sound design, creating immersive soundscapes that feel both spontaneous and intricately crafted.
The album opens with `Gleam of The Goddess` which builds slowly with a quietly shared synth and guitars and a rhythmic drum beat before rising volubly and musically. We enjoy a fairly rocklike offering with `Trigger` that felt like being taken on a journey. It was initially driven by guitars but there are what sounded like laser gun pews and zaps in the latter section.
`Letting Go (softly)` does more or less what the title suggests and is a delicate, gentle composition that does feel like a disengagement from something or somebody whereas `Letting Go (hardly)` is much more forceful and suggests a resistance to releasing or unshackling with its subtle guitar chord riffs and accompanying percussion.
I read that `Golen Shower` captures a moment of playful imperfection during the recording process, reminding the band to let go of creative rigidity. I have to admit that I didn`t perceive any fault in this captivating rock like jam. The title `Catfight` would suggest a physical altercation between two or more women and maybe this auditory rock out might exude this the more times you play the track.
I have to admit that I was unfamiliar with Tosca Tango Quartet’s `Ballade Four` which is covered here so had a quick listen to compare and found this interpretation fairly dreamy and introspective. It does build to a climax before easing back at the death. There`s sixty seconds of mayhem or possibly controlled noise shared on `Dear Hollow`.
`TORO`, I read, draw from the spontaneous methods of German painter Karl Otto Götz, reflecting the group’s embrace of intuition. The painter is best remembered for his explosive and complex abstract forms which is kind of mirrored in the music submitted here. A fear or avoidance of the number 13 is what apparently `Triskaidekaphobie` appears to relate to and the track does have a kind of jagged anxiousness or sense of unease about it. The first third is fairly manic and almost halts before morphing into a more reflective musing.
There`s a cover of (Steven D. Bingley-Ellison) or Flying Lotus’ `Zodiac Shit` which the band say channels their admiration for cutting-edge musical innovation. It`s twice the length and almost unrecognisable but retains the ambient sensibility of the original. The title `Bagbak` may equate to back up or get back or indeed may not. I found it lay somewhere between prog and funk but a number that certainly drew me in. It kind of took off at the midpoint into a synth like rock out before wrapping up.
The final offering `Waltz, alone` is a pensive, contemplative quite meditative listen and a good choice to close out on.
The album title of` Reverie` conjures a state of being pleasantly lost in one’s thoughts; a daydream, which is really a good explanation or analysis of what the album offers. I`m sure you`ll draw your own conclusions after listening to it.
Rating 8/10
