Artist: Human Playings
Label: Self-released
Release: 2009
Rating: 4/5
Jazz fusion is the label for a musical genre that blends jazz with other styles, most often rock, funk and blues. Early on, the fusion tag was reserved strictly for rock, i.e. jazz-rock, and if we look back at Slovenian music history, especially the Yugoslav era, we find a ton of quality bands that really left their mark on our cultural space. Izvir, Predmestje, September, Jutro, Sončna pot … the list is long, far too long to just rattle off. And it’s a real pleasure to watch today’s young bands in this genre, carrying the responsibility of continuing that history on their shoulders. One of those bands is Human Playings.
Human Playings are a foursome of “youngsters” from Ljubljana who started making music just over a year ago, so at the end of 2008. By September 2009 their demo EP was out in the world, with three tracks produced by Rok Zalokar, the band’s keyboardist and vocalist. Kristijan Armeni “was burning it up” on guitar, Luka Smole took care of the “groove” on bass, and Jernej Kersnik took the drum stool.
So the demo has three tracks, starting with “Nothing Is Real”. The track is a typical representative of the genre – quickly shifting tempo, an inconsistent rhythm, jazzy guitar bits with a touch of “heavier” drum hits, progressive keyboard sound and the funky “groove” of the bassist. What sets Human Playings apart from other jazz fusion bands in Slovenia today is perhaps that the instrumental side comes with vocals, which makes them a tad more unique. Feedback, Zmajev rep, Moonlight Sky (since they’ve been working as a trio) … none of these bands have a vocalist. Sadly, though, Rok’s vocals don’t match the quality of the music being played. The lyrics are fine, the vocals are definitely there, just not his. When it’s time to show a bit more range or blend in with the melodic side of the instrumental, the keyboardist unfortunately falls flat across the board. Just when it seems his voice has settled into the woven sonic web of his bandmates, the illusion fades fast; the guy has an average voice. Then again, where there’s criticism, there’s usually praise too – the guy is an excellent keyboardist.
“People Leave” is once again a great example of pure genre fusion and a bit of light experimentation. This time the guitarist, Kristijan Armeni, offers us a bit more, leading most of the track. Sadly, at moments the guitar is just too quiet, though less so than on the first track. The tune is another proof that this is, without a doubt, a band with huge potential.
The demo closes with a track titled “Stranger Properties”. The most experimental song on the demo is again full of excellent guitar and keyboard arrangements, which seem to be the main driving force of the band’s music. The track’s extremely progressive intro is balanced by the smoothness and slow melodicism of the “chorus” part. The vocals once again aren’t exactly a highlight for the ear; Zalokar should have stuck to the range he’s got, and he probably could have even pulled it off with that kind of singing. Unfortunately, he tried too much for his abilities, and the vocals are again below the musical average of the instrumental music.
The demo is as short as it is, which is a shame since the music is fantastic, so we’re barely satisfied. The downsides have been mentioned – the vocals and the too-quiet guitar, since in spots where it should be the loudest or up front, the keyboards drown it out. The second one is easy to fix, the first will probably stay as it is. I’m not saying anything, Zalokar may be hiding an arsenal of vocal potential, but on the demo it’s expressed wrong.
To wrap up, no need to overcomplicate things – all you fans of jazz, rock and everything in between, head straight to Human Playings’ myspace, where besides listening to the tracks you can also download the mp3 of the reviewed demo totally free. Enjoy.
Lineup
Rok Zalokar – keyboards, vocals
Kristijan Armeni – guitar
Luka Smole – bass
Jernej Kersnik – drums
Production
Rok Zalokar
Tracklist
1. Nothing Is Real
2. People Leave
3. Stranger
