Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Igor - Solo View

Igor Grigoriev is a Los Angeles-based composer who s a member of the free jazz ensemble, The OGOGO. He has been very active in the Avant-Garde scene there for quite a while and is also an avid soloist, blending elements of jazz and classical with a significant amount of atonal chaos. His latest effort, "Solo View" is a collection of compositions that range from chaotic noise pieces to a few more tame guitar works.

Listening to the album straight through, the first half seems to be significantly more chaotic and much harder to listen to than the second half, which is much more coherent in nature and more clearly shows Igor's talent for composition. The tonal side of his compositional style lends itself much better to his impressive chops while the atonal chaos sounds forced from the screaming amp. However, Igor does do a really good job of making his instrument emulate other instruments throughout the disc. Overall, this would be a good addition to any collection of guitar-based art-music. He certainly pushes the limits with what is sonically possible, albeit at times sacrificing some elements of musicality.

7/10 More information and ordering at www.myspace.com/ogogoigor

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