There has been a slowly brewing storm hovering over Toronto for over a decade. The storm has many fronts, tendrils of cloud that roll outward and then collapse inward again. The maelstrom comprises talent, musicianship, songcraft, camaraderie, gratitude, and love. This is The Cosmic Range. The members of this crew share a deep sense of mutual respect; they have maneuvered individually and in many collaborative configurations over the years but convene to conjure sweet sonic love together as a unit. Now they’ve unveiled The Gratitude Principle for our fortunate ears to salivate over.
If one must name a leader of The Cosmic Range, then Matthew “Doc” Dunn comes to mind, yet there is serious groupthink present in the execution of this music. Kieran Adams, Jonathan Adjemian, Isla Craig, Andy Haas, Mike “Muskox” Smith, Maximilian “Slim Twig” Turnbull, Brandon Valdivia and Dunn are true collaborators. They are a unit, espousing a love for the music that unfurls naturally from their bodies. Together they unleash a cosmic, fiery, jazz-inspired groove that bobs and weaves to avoid pigeonholing. Demolishing genre, and instead choosing to birth new forms of composition and improvisation, the group bash their way through six evocative and entrancing pieces of music.
Leading off with “Palms to Heaven”, the Range immediately set in motion a flurry of dark, free jazz-inspired shadows. Craig’s wordless vocalizing invokes the presence of sinister beings, as the group improvises a throbbing rumble beneath her. A hint of respite arrives with “Breathing Water”, in which a delicate flute melody leads into a percussive groove that calls forth dub forms filtered through the clear lens of consonance. “Eyes for Rivers” is transformative to those unprepared. Stabbing deep to the core of our lizard brains, the warped sax and damaged electronics trigger a deep emotional response. It’s unrestrained imagination at its finest, a Lynchian nightmare come to life.
Easily my favorite piece, “The Observers” shines brightly with a jazz-funk glow. The unstoppable rhythm and ripping solos are mind-bending, to say the least. It’s an unrelenting blast of incendiary bliss. “Rivers for Eyes” is a snake-like trip to another dimension, a collective improvisation that sails toward mysterious shores. The Gratitude Principle closes with an eponymous piece, one that unfurls with a swinging pace. The patient cadence builds toward a grand climactic statement that finds The Cosmic Range tearing a hole in space-time, with just enough momentum to throw us off our orbit. It’s the perfect ending to a stellar collection of music.
Snap up this swinging collection of cosmic tunesmithery while it’s hot. Hit up the Idée Fixe website or the Cosmic Range Bandcamp and choose your poison. It’s tasty!
