By Richard BluteÂ
The band Street Fight consists of Itta Nakamura on drums, João Clemente
on guitar and Nuno Jesus on bass, and this band absolutely cranks. I’m
tempted to leave this review at that and just tell the reader to go hit
PLAY. You’ll understand quickly.
Their music is somehow very familiar and yet new and exciting. It’s the
standard configuration of a power trio, electric guitar, electric bass
and drums. Part of me was hoping they’d launch into some Disraeli Gears,
and while that didn’t happen exactly, the trio did a fine job of
demonstrating just how flexible this combination of instruments can be
and how much great music it can produce.
The short track Iron Resolve is pure noise, sounding a bit like one of
Sonic Youth’s heavier tunes. Equanimity is a great track, the bass and
drums find a deep groove and settle into it. Feet were tapping listening
to this one and Clemente’s guitar work here is really sharp.
The track Paradox Of Calm is, paradoxically, not calm at all. Clemente
starts by playing some funky guitar lines straight out of Fear Of
Music-era Talking Heads but then the guitar suddenly goes fuzzy and the
tempo slows to some sludgy metal. This band obviously wants to surprise
their listeners and keep them on their toes. With musicians this
talented, the surprise is always a good one.
The centrepiece of the album is a 5-part suite called The Storm. In the
first part (The Eye), Nakamura has switched from a standard drum kit to
percussion and Jesus is playing an almost drone-like line. In the second
part (The Eyewall), the bass is especially thumping as the funky tempo
of earlier tracks returns, but now Clemente is playing some classic rock
guitar, and the combination works just as well. In part 3 (Rainbands),
Nakamura is showing off his skills (and they are many) with the track at
first being largely an interaction between guitar and drums. But with
part 4 (Uplift) the tempo and style change again. It might be the best
track on the album. Bass and drums are once again locked into a groove
and the guitar becomes more and more intense. Then Nakamura’s drumming
really takes off and the whole suite builds to a startling conclusion.
This album is a fine example of a band finding the sweet spot between
guitar rock and improvised music and exploring it for all it’s worth. It
was also an introduction for me to the very cool Portuguese label
Profound Whatever. I’ve been exploring their other offerings, in
particular further collaborations between Nakamura and Clemente, and I
predict I’ll be reviewing more of their music in the future.