UNFOLDING out now on Dross:tik Records
5/5 stars --  Montréal's HOUR magazine

Tracklisting (to listen online, please visit my myspace page):
Additional players:  Cello - Nick Storring;   Clarinet - Fiona Ryan;   Drums - Sean Best;   Violin - Rose Bolton

Some reviews of Unfolding so far:

John Kameel Farah - (Dross:tik Records) 
Unfolding
by Steve Lalla (Hour Magazine)
 
5/5 stars

"Celebrated Canadian pianist John Farah has been fusing electronic beats with future
jazz and classical composition since 2005. Trip-hop, drum'n'bass and experimental
electronica enthusiasts will be floored by Farah's seamless mastery of the myriad sonic layers here:
percussive elements, keys, synthesizers, Amen breaks and soft jazz chords intermingle
in a breathtakingly complex dance. Whether drawing from breakcore and dubstep, North Indian
modal traditions or abstract baroque compositions, Farah's music works on a dizzying
array of levels and will astonish chin-stroking jazz nerds, brain dead bass-heads
and those seeking the coolest new background music. Incomparable."
  . . .

Review of Unfolding in CueMix Magazine (Germany)
. . .

A review from MusicMachinist (Russia) - read the english translation here

. . .

From WHOLENOTE Magazine, written by Andrew Timar:

"Toronto composer and pianist John Farah noted in a recent interview, “I wanted Unfolding to be like my favourite juggernaut classical pieces, something you could listen to hundreds of times because you're always hearing new details ..." (Hour Magazine). In this goal, it seems to me that he succeeded brilliantly. I can’t wait for a live concert version with full symphony orchestra.

Overall, the structure of Unfolding resembles a grand 20th c. piano concerto in ten movements. Its symphonic accompaniment is here deftly provided by synthesizers and acoustic drums, clarinet and cello. Its style and musical language is a veritable musical alchemical amalgam, drawing from an incredibly varied range of Western and Middle Eastern contemporary and historical sources. Established musical forms abound, both Middle Eastern (the 10 beat samai metre in mvt. 6), and Western (the passacaglia underpinning mvt. 5). Contemporary urban dance styles are welcome in Farah’s concerto too. They make guest appearances alongside advanced jazz augmented chords and tonal passages reminiscent of Schoenberg’s 12 tone musical language. The composer’s love for the keyboard music of the Renaissance is not neglected either and gets a place at the table, though the harpsichord is not included as it was on his first CD, “Creation”.

Unfolding reflects a mature fully-realised musical voice in the tradition of European keyboard-composers. Imagine one part rippling jazzy piano and Rhodes lines blended into crunchy augmented chords, one part chopped-up drum samples, trippy acid synth lines and drum ’n’ bass, plus another part Middle Eastern percussion and modal references, all served in a sophisticated highball glass in the form of a 20th century piano concerto. Can’t? Then you’ll just have to listen to this album."

. . .

"Orchestrating Ephiphanies": in Montréal's Hour Magazine
Toronto-based pianist and composer John Kameel Farah stunned the world with the release of his achingly emotive and infinitely intricate sophomore album Unfolding earlier this year. Drawing on influences from his background ... and expertly seasoning them with peerless electronic drum programming, Farah is breaking down barriers towards creating a more natural and intuitive musical dialogue between man and his technology. With Unfolding he has completely rewritten the rulebook, producing a labyrinthine soundscape of such dizzying colours, depths and sonorities that it can't be called jazz, modern classical or fusion any easier than it could be labelled drum'n'bass or IDM.  Read the complete article HERE
. . .

 NOW Magazine:  DISC REVIEW  NNNN (4/5)
John Kameel Farah
Unfolding (Dross:tik) BY BENJAMIN BOLES
Describing this disc as a combination of jazz and drum ’n’ bass is accurate but extremely misleading.
No, this is not laid-back coffee shop breaks with lukewarm horn solos tacked on top,
and you’re probably never going to hear these tracks DJed in some cheesy lounge.

John Kameel Farah, a regular in the experimental improv scene,
expands his jazz palette with classical and Middle Eastern references (as well as considerable technical chops).
However, he’s also interested in electronic music and pairs his rolling piano figures with crunchy,
chopped-up drum samples and gurgling acid synth lines.
The result is a remarkably successful combination of computer music and live musicianship,
and manages to sound unlike pretty much anything else out there.
   . . .

David Dacks, Exclaim Magazine, August, 2009 writes:
With Unfolding, Farah concentrates all his diverse energies into one powerful statement.
Actually describing what's happening is a hell of a lot more challenging than listening to these
waterfall-like cascades of sounds...  It's simply impossible to imagine what's going to happen next....
Eleven-minute epic closer "Cataclysm" has several pile driving false endings that represent
the furthest extremity of this maximalist work.    -David Dacks, Exclaim Magazine, August, 2009





Home
Myspace page