1939 Ensemble New Cinema

It is common, when describing an album, to reference the stylings of similar groups, thereby assuring the purchaser of a compatible listening experience. And yet, such a common task arrives at truly uncommon results when attempting to define and compare the multi-dimensional experience of 1939 Ensemble’s fourth release, New Cinema.

If experiencing casually, the listener might catch moments of rhythmic guitar-and-hi-hat symbiosis akin to Battles, reverberating trumpet calls harkening to Miles Davis, effects-heavy swells that could have graced Jaga Jazzist’s mighty A Livingroom Hush or head-turning beat drops as deep as Amon Tobin’s Supermodified. But this album refuses to be shoehorned within a Venn Diagram of genres and artists any more than the unique artists compared here.

José Medeles (The Breeders) and David Coniglio once again call upon the fundamentals of heart-pounding drum beats beneath a palette of smoky vibraphone to craft what has become their defiant signature sound, but push the limit still further with a fervor that the founding duo of 1939 Ensemble seem to relish. This release acts as a true coming-of-age story for the group, solidifying the incomparable talents of multi-instrumentalists Josh Thomas (trumpet / synth) and Knate Carter (guitar / vibraphone) as the band arrives fully at the musical tale these four were destined to tell, together.