โItโs been quite a while since the release of the last album, and in that time an awful lot has happened.โ is the opening line from Greg Carmichaelโs notes for the bandโs brand new album, 33 1/3 , and never a truer word has been written. The last studio album from the band, โRoselandโ, was released in 2011, followed by a live double album, โLive In Londonโ, in 2014. โIt has almost become a running joke, โ says Miles Gilderdale, โafter every single show we are constantly being asked, โWhenโs the new album coming out?โ Itโs nice to finally have an answer for them.โ...
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โItโs been quite a while since the release of the last album, and in that time an awful lot has happened.โ is the opening line from Greg Carmichaelโs notes for the bandโs brand new album, 33 1/3 , and never a truer word has been written. The last studio album from the band, โRoselandโ, was released in 2011, followed by a live double album, โLive In Londonโ, in 2014. โIt has almost become a running joke, โ says Miles Gilderdale, โafter every single show we are constantly being asked, โWhenโs the new album coming out?โ Itโs nice to finally have an answer for them.โ
There are two main reasons for the amount of time fans have had to wait for this album. The first is that the band feel very passionately that you should only write and album when you have something to say. โWeโre quite lucky in that respect, โ says Miles, โwe donโt have a record label breathing down our necks telling us we need to put out something every year.โ Greg; โ For us, the only time we even consider going into the studio is when we have some material that we really believe in. Itโs been quite a while since Iโve had the space to even think about being creative.โ Gregโs wife Jan was tragically and suddenly struck with meningitis shortly before an American tour in 2015, โItโs one of those things that you hear about, but never imagine happening to you or your loved ones. One day she was absolutely fine and the next we were in hospital with Jan in a coma and the doctors telling me there was a chance she would never come out of it.โ Fortunately she did recover, though the ferocity of the infection has left her permanently affected. Itโs just incredible that something can do that to someone so quickly, so as you imagine I couldnโt even think about writing or playing.โ
With the help of guitarists Steve Oliver and Nate Najar, Acoustic Alchemy continued to tour the United States with Greg flying in as and when he could, โI couldnโt believe how great they were. Iโm not sure I could do that, just take a whole set of songs and learn someone elseโs parts and just go up and play it so incredibly well. Iโm really grateful to them, and Janโs incredible strength and determination have been such an inspiration, and thatโs what made me want to get back to writing.โ
For over three decades the band have been at the forefront of contemporary jazz, even if the bandโs signature eclectic mix of styles has meant they have never comfortably fit snugly into any one genre; โWeโve had a lot of labels over the years, at the start there were all these names flying around like New Adult Contemporary, New Age music, and then it became Smooth Jazz, but weโve never really thought about ourselves as being in any one particular genre. We just make music we like.โ Says Greg, โAt the core itโs always been about one simple concept: the sound of the nylon and steel guitars working together, but that leaves a lot of scope for exploring all sorts of musical ideas.โ
That is certainly the case with 33 1/3, and album which touches on Jazz (such as the track โA Little Closerโ), Blues (โBlues for Mr. Muโ being a tribute to the late Steely Dan founder Walter Becker), Caribbean (the band have a long history of incorporating the sounds of the Islands into their songs, and โThe Girl With A Planโ follows that tradition from such past hits as โMr. Chowโ and โJamaica Heartbeatโ), Eastern (found in the opening track of the album โEast of Babylonโ) and even Classical music (โAllemandeโ and โPrelude in D Minorโ two pieces that Greg has always loved playing since his early days at the London College of Music), and yet with all the diversity of styles, the album manages to still sound like classic Acoustic Alchemy, as Miles explains, โThe band has changed a lot over the years, different personnel, different eras, different influences, but we always somehow make it sound like Acoustic Alchemy. I think every band tries to do that, to make something thatโs new and interesting, but the fans still hear it and go, thatโs them!โ
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