Like a secret meeting between free form jazz and math rock comes the fourth release from instrumental trio Ahleuchatistas. These three lads from North Carolina are often termed 'avant-punk', but don't let that tag fool you, as this ain't no modern Sex Pistols here by a long shot. What you get on Even In the Midst... is complex, weaving, ballsy music, sort of like what you would get if you took three punkers and fed them a steady diet of King Crimson, Mahavishu Orchestra, Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane, Present, John Zorn, Massacre, Happy Family, and Dysrhythmia. Sound frightening to you? Well, at times this stuff is pretty ferocious, but instead of beefing up their attack with distortion and bombast, Ahleuchatistas got for the juggular with pure technical prowess and a raw intensity that is quite impressive. Even when they opt for more gentler and avant-garde tones, like they do on "The Bears Of Cantabria Shall Sleep No More", the results are equally chilling. Guitarist Shane Perlowin snakes plenty of intricate melody lines that envelope and wrap around the slippery bass grooves from Derek Poteat, while drummer Sean Dall happily churns out fill after fill of tricky jazz and prog rock licks. Don't expect endless soloing here, as the music on Even In the Midst... is not about that, but instead you get treated to marvelous synergy and tight improvisation (listen to the jagged free-form attack of "Elegant Proof") that at times recalls another Cuneiform Records band, Upsilon Acrux. It's all quite tricky, often times charming, and very enjoyable complex music that should appeal to prog, jazz, math rock, and avant-garde lovers of all ages.
Track Listing
1. ...Of All This
2. Post-Colonial Nausea
3. Red-Coated Emergency Exit
4. Cup Of Substance
5. The Bears Of Cantabria Shall Sleep No More
6. Prosthetic God
7. Elegant Proof
8. K-Bit
9. Brilliant Danderkovs
10. Take Me To Your Leader Never Sounded So Alien
11. Swimming Underwater With A Cat On Your Back
12. Where We Left Off
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