Besh o droM — Gyí!

Last year I went to a liveshow by this Hungarian band and there they finally won me over. I knew their two CD’s and I liked those, but music like this not really designed to be canned, it’s a pale shadow of the real thing. Although here in Holland chances are small you get the full flavour of a Hungarian gypsyparty although there always will be a few immigrants that come from the country that the band is from and who’ll burst into dance.

Besh o droM is a big group with every member being a virtuoso on their instruments, but what else is new in gypsymusic in the these parts of Europe? Also the mix of various traditions, ranging from all over central Europe over to the Orient up to Afghanistan but also over to the West, particularly by the rhythm section, isn’t partularly new. Take Tortapapír where the band mimics a James Brown groove. Funny enough you don’t hear that much typical Hungarian in their sound: mostly singer Ági Szalóki’s voice. Her lovely voice effortlessly meanders of over the intricate rhythmshifts of Makedón (a Macedonian tune I presume). The voice of singer Mónika Juhász Miczura, who made appearances in several gypsy movies and has her own band Mitsoura, is a bit less my thing because she sounds like she’s ‘on helium’, to put it somewhat unrespectfully. On the other hand the percussive quality of her singing is intrigueing so maybe I shouldn’t complain. For Fidóú we’re taken to the ‘Hot Club The France’ with some flashy acoustic guitarplaying. Productionwise the band have improved over their previous albums as this album catches the energy of a liveshow best yet: the bass and drums sound phat. Bandleader Gergő Barcza picks up his kaval (normally he plays saxophone) ‘overblowing’ it a lot to create a wheezy and exciting sound and it renders one of the best tunes on the album: Kavalos.

Have I told yet they can play really fast?

Mónika returns in Lake Jakha... still not sure what to think about that voice... instrumentally it’s fine though. One of the most funky grooves is found in Mániás Depresszió (I don’t speak Hungarian but does that say ‘Manic Depression’?) Surprisingly different from the rest of the tunes is Úgy Elmennék, with its heavy reverb and a more introspective nature. Until the horns set in with what they normally do. A great closer of a great album.

What we got hear is an other great gypsyband that knows how to build a party. Strangely enough they are already playing jazzfestivals because ‘jazz’ seems to mean ‘improvisation’ and ‘virtuosity’ now. Anyway, don’t let such things get in the way of feeling the positive vibes of this band. And definitely keep an eye out on their tourdates to get even more excited.