The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble

The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble
(Planet Mu)

The duo of Jason Kohnen and Gideon Kiers originally formed The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble around the turn of the century and started out by creating soundtracks to moody silent films such as Murnau’s Nosferatu and Lang’s Metropolis. In the meantime, they’ve added several new members and have said that their debut album is particularly inspired by the work of the Brothers Quay, and their dark forms of electronic jazz seem to provide a pretty good backdrop to the creepy short films of the elusive pair.

As one might expect, this is some dark, slinky jazz music that mixes lots of organic instrumentation (including guitar and some particularly effective trombone and cello) with mostly subtle programming. The opening track of “The Nothing Changes” is particularly effective, as a skeletal rhythm consisting of sparse upright bass strums and simple percussion provide a shakey backbone while tendril-like horns and strings wisp around repetitive and eerie guitar.

“Pearls For Swine” brings the electronic element much higher into the mix as overdriven drum programming slams away over double bass and filtered strings. “Lobby” is easily one of the most effective tracks on the entire album, building from swirls of cello and muffled beats into a rumbling midsection that keeps pulling the tension tighter and tighter until the track unleashes a wall of filtered horror-film strings that gives me a rush every time I hear it.

Showing off quite a bit of range, the group even manages to pull of tracks like the more fleet-footed “Parallel Corners,” where deft guitar player dances around a slithering rhythm section and more drowsy horns. It’s one of the lighter tracks on the disc, and coming halfway through, is a nice breath of fresh air. In spots, such as the completely spacey “Amygdhala” and overlong “March Of The Swine,” the disc loses a little bit of focus and sags some, but otherwise the release is a nice walk through mutant jazz territory (somewhat akin to Amon Tobin, with far less breaks) that should appeal to any fan of cinematic soundscapes.

For their second full length album, The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble set their sails towards uncharted territories and unveiled a new symbiosis of warm electronica and dusky yet clear acoustic instrumentation. Familiar yet unsettling, varied yet coherent, dark yet warm, the highly detailled maps of “Here Be Dragons” form TKDE’s most personal and crafted release, a mesmerising combination of traditional and modern sounds, and a highly rewarding album.

“Hic sunt dragones”: beyond boundaries of known music genres lay ocean of unmapped territories, where dragons are said to be lying in wait. And it is towards them that The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble decided to sail with their second studio album.

The fruit of long recording sessions started shortly after the release of their debut album in 2006, TKDE’s new opus is also the first full length album for their now established line-up. Bringing together the tastes, influences and wishes of the band’s seven members, this album was bound to tread into uncharted areas. Some of them had been presented (in alternate versions) on the earlier “Mutations EP”, released by Ad Noiseam in early 2009, but it is with “Here Be Dragons” that the whole map is revealed.

Blending traditional, acoustic instruments with an acute sense for electronic composition, The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble intends to create fresh and deep atmospheres out of familiar sounds. The result is an eerily journey through partly organic, partly mechanical tonalities.

In comparison with TKDE’s debut album and the following “Mutations”, “Here Be Dragons” distinguish itself with his focus on very clear acousticsounds, pulsating organic basses and a wider room left for Charlotte Cegarra’s vocals. Still drawing inspiration from old movies, The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble delivers here a soundtrack to a dense, intense yet-to-be-made film, shifting from the touching scenes of “Embers” and “Seneca” to the darker and perilous ones of “Caravan!” and “Samhain Labs” (named after TKDE’s studio).

An intense, coherent and original work which required an uncommon amount of work, care and perfectionism, “Here Be Dragons” is definitely TKDE’s most accomplished and important release to date, and should show the path that this band intends on taking on his already remarkable career.

Artist: The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble
Album: Here Be Dragons
Discogs: discogs.com
Label: Ad Noiseam / Ad Noiseam
Catalog#: adn120cd / adn120
Released: 2009-10-15
Style: Future Jazz / Downtempo

Tracklist:

1. Lead Squid
2. Caravan!
3. Embers
4. Sirocco
5. Mists Of Krakatoa
6. Sharbat Gula
7. Samhain Labs
8. Seneca
9. The MacGuffin