Short Reviews [Deep Energy Orchestra - 2020 - "The Return"]

This is the second release from Deep Energy Orchestra, a project masterminded by Jason Everett. Everett is a performer, composer, and producer who plays a variety of stringed and percussive instruments with his primary instruments being his seven-string fretless bass and acoustic six-string bass. Jason has played music outside of the mainstream for most of his career including with the avant-garde space-jazz ensemble, Little Green Men; Flamenco fusion groups, Machete’, Deseo Carmin, and Acoustic Fantasy; world fusion groups, Avaaza, Tarana, and Andre Feriante; and Kirtan artists, Gina Sala’ and Girish. Jason has also been recently performing and recording with Bay Area world jazz fusion groups, Facing East and Ancient Future. Jason has created his own groups including Taal Maya, a Shakti inspired Indian fusion project and Pandamonium, which is described as “Prog Rock Jazz Funk.” Following on from his debut, ‘Playing With Fire’, Jason was commissioned by the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra to score his music as well as pieces from Ravi Shankar, Anoushka Shankar, and Paco deLucia for a full-length concert called “From Spain to India” and one of the pieces from that concert series, “Mysterious World”, is included here. Apart from Everett himself, only Fareed Haque (Billy Cobham, Zawinal Syndicate, (guistar/guitar)) plays on all tracks, and there are plenty of guests including the likes of V. Selvaganesh (Shakti with John McLaughlin), Trey Gunn (King Crimson), Neyvili Radhakrishna (Jonas Hellborg), Ujwal Nagar (Advaita) and Suhail Yusuf Khan. This is World album with as many influences from Indian music as it has from jazz and more eclectic forms. At the heart of all of it is some amazing bass playing, which is simply incredible, and by surrounding himself with class musicians, who often only play on a small number of songs each, he has broadened the musical palette at his disposal. One of the musicians, Neyveli Radhakrishna, plays a double-neck violin and I must confess I did not realise such an instrument had even been developed! Touch guitar from Trey Gunn may be on the same track as tablas, while the drums feel far more hard rock than jazz yet that is also there in spades. This is an incredibly diverse album and one is never sure where one is going to be taken, with so many differing musical styles supposedly at odds with each other but somehow coming together to create something which is dynamic and intriguing. Another release for those who wish to investigate far from the mainstream.