What People Say
Review by
La Carne Magazine
"Todos juntos, y lo de juntos va por acompasados y por la conexión mental casi telepática que demuestran en acción, ponen en funcionamiento “Who’s Counting?”, primer álbum de este cuarteto de “fusión de cámara”…“ las ideas van surgiendo de forma natural y dando lugar a un discurso fluido a veces controladamente excéntrico que se ramifica desde el eclecticismo rock hasta el jazz y la improvisación en solos de mucha altura”. “Zappa, los paisajes de Canterbury y el avant jazz se pasean por aquí.”
"All together, and the 'together' refers to their synchronized rhythms and the almost telepathic mental connection they demonstrate in action, they set in motion 'Who's Counting?,' the debut album of this 'chamber fusion' quartet..." "Ideas emerge naturally, giving rise to a fluid discourse, at times controlled yet eccentric, branching out from rock eclecticism to jazz and high-flying improvisation solos. 'Zappa, the landscapes of Canterbury, and avant-garde jazz take a stroll here."
"Qué agradable leer la opinión autorizada de aficionados (si digo expertos no les va a gustar) con miles de discos escuchados en su mochila, sobre el "Who's Counting?" de Beat Love Oracle. "Qué gozadica. Los Beat Love Oracle están llevando el Jazz a cuotas de creatividad inimaginables, coquetean con la Chamber y el más jovial de los RIO's y lo hacen con una sonrisa en la cara. Exuberantes. Son tan buenos y suenan tan frescos... si esto no es Vanguardia nada puede serlo... Uno de mis discos del año sin duda y, por si fuera poco, en vinilo suenan exultantes." (Carlos Torrecilla Abenoza) "Son tremendos, de lo mejor del año, incluso añadiría que tienen cierta influencia Zappiana. Sorprendentes"
How nice to read the authoritative opinion of fans (if I say experts won’t like it) with thousands of records heard in their backpack, about Beat Love Oracle’s Counting. ′′ What a joy. The Beat Love Oracle are taking Jazz to unimaginable creativity quotas, flirting with the Chamber and the most jovial of the RIO’s and doing so with a smile on their face. Lush. They are so good and sound so fresh… if this isn’t Vanguard, nothing can be… One of my albums of the year without a doubt and, if it were little, they sound exultant in vinyl.” (Carlos Torrecilla Abenoza) ′′ They are tremendous, of the best of the year, I would even add that they have some Zappian influence Amazing
An interesting CD release here, two sets of music by two different Belgian groups released sixteen years apart, the common factor being composer, keyboardist and mallet percussionist Frank Nuyts, as well as sax player Frank Debruyne, who were both members of the earlier octet Hardscore, as well as the current four-piece ensemble Beat Love Oracle, who released their first LP titled Who’s Counting? last year in 2020. On the other hand, Hardscore hasn’t been heard from since 2004, when they released their last album Monkey Trial. At that time the octet was live-premiering new material from a project titled Carbon Fixation, of which only three numbers had been properly recorded in studio versions, yet those to date have never appeared on any releases. So the order that material is presented on this CD release begins with the four tracks from the Beat Love Oracle album from 2020 with one bonus track added (it was originally released LP only) then moves back sixteen years to those final three unreleased recordings by Hardscore, after which we get a newly recorded version of the track “13 Seconds of Bonobo Sex” which was originally featured on Monkey Trial way back in 2004.It’s worth noting that none of the members of Hardscore that appeared on that 2004 album, save Nuyts and Debruyne appear on the four Hardscore cuts here, intimating that there was a wholesale change in personnel in the band’s final days. Let’s start with the Beat Love Oracle material, which opens with the fourteen minute “What Beats Watts?,” an expansive piece of what could best be considered chamber jazz-rock, with saxes and marimba out front, and a solid roadbed of drums, percussion and bass powering it all from below; when the sax is soloing’ Nuyts might switch to synths to give the piece a sort-of symphonic backdrop at that time. And did I mention the very strange vocals that don’t cut in until around the eleven minute mark? “Please Don’t Come (Any Closer)” is a happy-go-lucky instrumental piece that might recall Zappa in his Uncle Meat period. “Shift! We’re Lost” has a general improvisational feeling that wanders back to complex composed territory from time to time. One might hear traces of Canterbury in the Beat Love Oracle sound as well. As we shift to the final four tracks of Hardscore material, the sound becomes even more jazzy and orchestral, highlighted by the powerful female vocals of Annelies Van Hijfte, perhaps reminiscent of a breezy and less angular version of Thinking Plague. Beginning to end, this is an outstanding release showcasing the compositional brilliance of Frank Nuyts.
Review by
Exposé Online - Peter Thelen
Hardscore was an eclectic eight-piece chamber-jazz-rock band from Belgium with a curious sound involving a strong reliance on mallet percussion, keyboards, and vocals; they released four albums beginning in 1998 and seem to have evaporated after around 2005, following their final release Monkey Trial.
The leader and primary composer in Hardscore was Frank Nuyts, who continued writing music in the years following the disbandonment of Hardscore, and a few years ago put together a new group called Beat Love Oracle, a quartet, something of a leaner, meaner, mostly instrumental band exploring similar musical territories. Several of Hardscore’s final recordings accompanied BLO’s second album Don’t Count on Us. Nuyts, in addition to composing most of the material, is here playing marimba and synthesizers. Frank Debruyne, who was also a member of Hardscore, is here on saxes and synthesizers (and composed one track, “Tadadada”).
The group is rounded out by the intense rhythm section of drummer Ronald Dhaene and bassist Stijn Deldaele, the latter who also contributes vocals — through a vocoder — to the opening track “There Are No Downbeats.” Their music is strictly composed and arranged, yet still has an improvised feel at times, a bit of jazz by virtue of the saxplay, a bit of Zappa due to the everpresent tuned mallet percussion, built on a foundational chamber style that informs the compositions throughout.
Dhaene’s skill as a drummer is to provide each piece with exactly what it needs, support-wise, and riff as much as possible whenever it’s appropriate. The synths typically come into play as support for soloists, for example on “Don’t Bump Your Head Against the Cloud.” Reminders of Zappa and The Mothers are everywhere due to the mallets, while aggressive numbers like “Tadadada” with a powerful sax presence and incessant groove will recall bands like The Muffins, yet when all is put together, Beat Love Oracle has a sound that is their own. Those who go for the vinyl version will only get six tracks, while downloaders and CD purchasers will get eight, and those two extra tracks are as essential as any other in this outstanding set.
Review by
Lazland - Peter Thelen
EVER SO SLIGHTLY BARKING, BUT VERY INTERESTING FARE
The wonderfully named Beat Love Oracle are a fusion outfit from Belgium formed in 2017 and released Turning the Table via áMARXE at the back end of 2022. The personnel Frank Nuyts (marimba & synth), Frank Debruyne (sax & synth), Stijn Deldaele (bass & vocals), and Ronald Dhaene (drums & multipad) combine to bring a very interesting work which takes in a range of influences from progressive rock to barmy Zappaesque via the avant-garde fusion road. As such, it is a challenging listen not to be taken lightly, but, as ever with intelligent and well performed music, patience brings its own rewards, and having listened over the past few weeks, I can recommend it highly, especially for those of you reading this review who want to expand their musical horizons into the eccentric world this lot inhabit, although you might want to be on the sharpish side as some of the wares on offer at https://amarxe.bandcamp.com/album/turning-the-table would appear to be almost sold out.
There are eight tracks, with only the one more than seven minutes, and it is a frantic ride, somewhat like those frightening things that go up and down at modern theme parks.
So, to the music.
We open with There Are No Downbeats, which might, I think, be a decent descriptor of this lot. Dhaene impresses immediately with his drum & percussion grooves before the band provide some strange noises and the sax interplays with synthesised vocals. A frantic organ duetting with the sax, all the time the rhythm section pushing matters along. Some of this music would sit well within a sci-fi film or, indeed, a documentary about the impact AI might have upon us in the future, with the synth vocals talking about new life as it ought to be and coming across as rather sinister despite the song title’s absence of downbeats, or perhaps from the AI perspective, there are no downbeats in control of us by machine. As we progress, we get a nicely balanced fusion of psych, jazz, and joyous improvisation before the final passage turns completely dark and manic, perhaps as we are erased, and the machines have their day.
Just Thumb Luck follows.
The bass is brilliant leading the moody sax and drum/percussion before it then takes a more subdued turn with the sax and rhythm thoughtful in an interesting jam with the drums then taking centre stage. What follows is an improvisational track with the main themes of the song reprised throughout. Best played in the dark loud with a drinky at your side following a difficult day’s work.
Too Early Bird!
is a clear contender for title of the year at the 2023 Lazland Awards, or, perhaps, Best Track Inspired By That Zappa Bloke Award. Whatever, there are some noises in amongst this that after several listens take your breath away, especially some of the basslines and some gorgeous marimba. Just over two minutes in, the track amongst the jams takes a more sort of traditional progressive rock turn with crunching bass riffs and melodies which could feature on any Chris Squire or Jonas Reingold work, it is that good. As the track reaches its denouement, the riffs, melodies, and noises compete.
Don’t Bump Your Head Above The Cloud is another cracking title and is also a beautiful piece of music. Just over six minutes of ambient joy which I must say comes as a complete surprise and contrast to the music which preceded it. Marimba, mournful sax, melodious bass, and some delightful complex patterns on drums create a pastiche where you feel yourself rising, almost as a child in those waking dreams of flying on your bed navigating the world. Halfway through, the interplay between marimba and drums are wonderful with some achingly gorgeous notes moving towards the close. This is a very uplifting piece of music I have embedded below. Enjoy.
