The Canadians synthesise disparate elements into a startlingly coherent whole.
It is almost laughably easy to imagine that Light the Horizon will be the album which bestows high-rotation global ubiquity upon Bedouin Soundclash. If this occurs, it will be largely on the strength of lead track Elongo, a languid summoning of sun-dappled paradise with a ruthlessly anthemic chorus, a song which sounds custom-manufactured to soundtrack the closing credits of an overwrought romance, or a commercial for coconut-flavoured chocolate.
If this, in turn, occurs, it will mean that many millions of people may come to regard the veteran Torontonian fusion outfit with the deranged loathing often provoked by inescapable fame. And this would be wretchedly unfair, as Elongo is by some margin the worst track on Light the Horizon. Elsewhere, Bedouin Soundclash’s fourth album bristles and fizzes with elegantly understated passion and deadpan punky fury, as the group pursue their muse to various ends of the musical Earth, evoking The Clash’s west London (Mountain Top), The Byrds’ California (May You Be the Road) and Rachid Taha’s Algeria (Fools Tattoo).
Lees de rest van deze review op BBC CD recensies (Engels)
Bron: BBC Music