EP Review: Aphelion – Prudent Primate

Most artists are in two camps right now when it comes to releasing music. Either they’re delaying any upcoming releases (all the more reason to get excited), or they’re continuing to release new music which can provide an escape during these trying times. With all the legwork done for their forthcoming EP, Prudent Primate saw no reason in delaying their latest whopping release. The Bristol based quintet have been tearing up the ever growing jazz scene, fusing psych, prog and electronica to a stormy brew.

Their multi layered tunes have been causing a stir and garnering attention from London’s booming jazz scene, earning themselves a spot at the prestigious Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club. This latest release sees their most ambitious work yet, including some stunning vocal performances from Stanlaey’s Bethany Stenning.

Opener ‘China Garden’ begins with dainty cymbal hits and ambient percussion, twinkly keys are slowly introduced and hold the same complexities of the work of GoGo Penguin whilst still retaining an aspect of simplicity. The tight bass groove is ultimately funky, complimenting the swirling synth sections which run parallel. At its zenith, the lead riff is repeated on sax and guitar, oozing that sweet 70s Cymande coolness.

Gliding into The Annexe, the booming kick drum and eerie 8-bit keys section is tense and spectral, exuding the same feeling of fighting the final boss on a video game. It stands out from the rest of the tracks on this EP, The Annexe is rugged and drenched in prog driven riffs, ultimately providing a great reflection of all the genres they try to incorporate into their weird and wonderful world. The last couple of minutes are coarse and pure grit, with the outro sounding like Snazzback’s long lost metal loving cousin. The pacing was a little slow for my liking, the groove being repeated a bit too long; ten minutes could have been seven, in my opinion.

Vocal performances provided by Stanlaey’s Bethany Stenning on Bloom Pt.1 and Bloom Pt. 2, the enchanting and woozy backdrop lay the foundations for her celestial deliverance.  There are faint airs of Led Zeppelin’s No Quarter during the intro of Bloom Pt. 1, it’s smokey, slow tempoed and ultimately a pleasant listen overall.

My biggest criticism of the record is that generally every track is sitting on the long side, and they risk a listener wanting to skip to the most interesting part. Rather than looking at this EP from the perspective of a radio centric 3-minutes-or-less perspective, one can understand it like an electronic dance music record. I start to understand the length, and other decisions, in a clearer way. Of course, a jazz listener may be well-versed with records like Kamasi’s The Epic, Miles’ Bitches Brew or anything by Pharoah Sanders, where songs run into the 20/30 minute territory, and so from that perspective, it’s nothing that isn’t down to personal taste.

Prudent Primate will be hosting a listening party for the release of Aphelion. Details can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/events/252459102839196

Main photo supplied by Prudent Primate

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