Search - Tyondai Braxton :: Central Market (Dig)

Am I really the first?

John | Atlanta, GA | 09/26/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There will be many more (positive) reviews soon, I hope. Anyway..



Tyondai Braxton is probably better known currently as the lead "singer," and multi-instrumentalist, for Battles. When I ripped this CD, my computer software labeled it as "Classical," probably meaning this is considered, or wanting to be considered, more high-brow. But you can tell Braxton never takes it that seriously - someone else must be responsible for that.



Battles fans may miss the drumming (we'll call what's in here "percussion," to keep with the high-brow theme). And John Adams might sue. But everybody else should be very pleased.



Braxton leads an ensemble that is mainly percussion and electronics, but also strings, and a kazoo is prominent for a lot of it. His weird singy-voice-manipulating thing shows up on most of the tracks, but it's just another instrument.

What comes out is very dramatic, cinematic - I would not be surprised to see Braxton show up with an orchestra in the near future.



The best attribute is that it's very lighthearted, whimsical. He's having a lot of fun.



He has won well-deserved praise from Bjork for the effort, and fans of the latter would definitely do well to pick this up. I bet Frank Zappa would give it two thumbs up, too. If you want a quick taste of the album, listen to about 30 seconds of Uffe's Woodshop - that would be the most representative taste of what you'll get."