Hope and Despair

Four years have passed since the release of Berlin Serengeti, the debut album from producer Niko Schabel and friends, aka Radio Citizen. His first album was an all-out assault of electronic music armed with organic tentacles that reached far into an eclectic bag of rough jazz and worldly funk. On Hope and Despair he takes an even headier blend of raucous live instrumentation, and works it into gritty songs and walls of sound with deft mixing and subtle studio trickery, all rooted by heavyweight bass lines. His mass ensemble of musical friends often performs together in the Radio Citizen live show that developed after the release of the first album. Their unified musical prowess is reflected in the soloing, the harmonies, and all the interactions that lift Hope and Despair above its predecessor. The album launches at full force on the first track, "Test Me." Jagged strings provide a tense backdrop for special guest Ursula Rucker to strut her stuff. On "Home," "Midnight" and "Skyscapers" Schabel furthers his Berlin Serengeti experiments forging indestructible genre (and speaker) busting joints that ride the line between hip hop, dub and jazz. On "Hope" and "Stop or Go" Bajka adds her unique dusty vocal flow to the busted beats. She also wrote the music and lyrics to "Summer Days," the more organic and live track of her three appearances. On "Move" and "Thema" Schabel balances Afro Cuban rhythm with big band backing. The sound, at times, is like an orchestra in the style of The Art Ensemble of Chicago or Sun Ra's Arkestra with huge wind sections or multiple percussionists driving the listener on a whirlwind tour through African rhythms, Ethiopique-stewed funk, and film-noir jazz. The bitter blue sound of "World" recalls vintage Archie Shepp (circa Attica Blues) with Schabel interjecting only brief moments of respite from the chaotic walls of horns and piano.