Short Reviews [Fraudprophets - 2019 - "Poptosis"]

Fraudprophets is a collaboration between multi-instrumentalist and composer Sean Halley and drummer Nate Morton, and while the roots are undoubtedly solidly in jazz, they also blend pop, rock and even country into a fluid fusion interesting melange of styles. “It probably isn’t the best way to go about it, but we randomly started this whole thing one night by drinking cocktails to a click track”, said Morton. “Not having a plan ended up being a real blessing, as the snippets of music that came out of that evening were free-spirited and fun, and they were infused with personality and our love for each other as musical dorks.” Halley continues, “Nate and I love just about every kind of music, so nothing was off limits if it was a style we felt comfortable with. The same was true for the production – I like big-sounding records, so if we needed a ridiculous Beastie Boys-esque organ-and-drums breakdown for a tune, I’d have to go figure it out.” The guys brought in various guests to help them out, with a dirty fat Hammond B3 being an obvious reference, but sadly there are no names on the press release and I actually don’t know how much of this is just the duo themselves. No matter who played on this, this is a sprightly and fun fusion release which at times sound more like a Seventies workout by one of the greats. It has a freedom within it, feeling and depth of expression which only comes from people working with absolutely no rules as they mix and blend as they see fit, following the music as it takes them on a journey instead of trying to corral it into something that doesn’t fit. It will be interesting to see how this transforms into the live environment, and they are currently putting a full act together to take this on the road. Well worth investigating if you enjoy fusion with some real heart behind it.