Amazon.co.uk Review: Motion, the debut album from DJ Jason Swinscoe's Cinematic Orchestra, is a future jazz classic. Each track perfectly marries mood and substance, mixing shuffling percussion and galloping drum breaks with chilled pianos, melancholy strings and live jazz horns. Heavy acoustic basslines mingle with samples of old blues singers and twinkly electric piano solos. It's a dark, late night brew that conjures up images of smoke-filled jazz clubs and dimly lit concert halls. But this is no exercise in jazz pastiche-Swinscoe genuinely loves the genre, and it shows. On Motion, he never slips into pointless jazz noodling opting instead for rolling breakbeats, moody soundtrack sounds and deft horn touches. Consequently, Motion is a brilliant album of dark, soundtrack jazz that'll make the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end.--Matt Anniss
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - I Agree
I agree with most of the reviewers comments - dark, smokey, jass/fusion etc. etc. I would suggest that anyone who enjoys works from early Soft Machine (first to fifth), Ian Carr's Nucleus, Isotope to Angelo Badalamenti's Fire Walk With Me should give this album a listen.
Rating: - It's jazz Jim, but not as we know it!!
I was a bit dismayed to read some of the reviews pushing this as great jazz, mainly because I have a large collection of jazz (both old and new) and this is probably the least likely thing I've got that falls into that genre. It feels overly repetitive, with the occasional high point - but they are too few to make it anything more than OK. It breaks no new ground, sounds quite derivative, but three stars for the quality of recording & it is well put together. But if you consider this to be ... Read More
Rating: - Great??
I bought this album after reading the rave reviews on Amazon. One reviewer has said it is better than Better than Miles Davis' 'Kind Of Blue' and John Coltrane's 'A Love Supreme'. Quite a statement. So does it live up to the hype? In short NO. For me there's nothing ground breaking here, just lots of repetitive noise. Never once was I completely drawn into the music. To fair there are a couple nice tracks on this album (And Relax and Diabolus). But to mention Cinematic Orchestra in the same breath ... Read More
Rating: - confusing and jarring
I had heard the track "Channel One Suite" before (on Solid Steel) but I never knew what it was, so it was a nice surprise to find it on here. It's an accessible tune, but is nice and complicated. Some of the other tracks are a bit inaccessible, others are really brilliant. Lovely drums, nice and loud and gritty. "Night of the Iguana" is a real classic, meandering drums, evocative and atmospheric strings. Sometimes I find the odd time signatures a bit confusing and jarring though, and it makes it harder ... Read More
Rating: - My Favourite Jazz Album
In my own humble opinion, this is the greatest jazz album ever released. That's a pretty bold statement when there are albums like Miles Davis' 'Kind Of Blue' or John Coltrane's 'A Love Supreme', but I stand by it. It isn't your usual jazz album where the whole group comes together and records a session. Instead, band 'leader' Joe Swinscoe sampled each of the other members and then arranged them all to produce 7 stunning tracks.
A dark mood pervades most of the pieces- 'Channel One Suite' ... Read More
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