If you are fan of or lived and survived the 90’s to millennium club and alternative music phenomenon era, Red Snapper and their albums such as “Making Bones” would have been remembered as their color of the ambient – the album cover and the music magically stained with our synapses as the time stamp.
To whom is new to Red Snapper, it is a UK based over three decades long run instrument band that features vocals, jazz, hip-hop, dub, funk, post-punk of improvisational musical melting pot which UK is renowned for as musicall, cultural, and racial which is likely how the real diverse counterculture emerges upon unique layers. Also they are known for being licensed to the UK’s treasury, WARP label. Red Snapper, activated since the 90’s to thrive their musical frontier as a band, they are known for supporting world tours of the major, fascinating artists such as Bjork, Massive Attack, and much more. After the time being a part of the band for several years, Red Snapper has licensed to UK longrun independent label, Lo Recordings. Notable that Red Snapper have taken a role on more unique occasions in collaboration: Red Snapper’s track, “Spikey” is featured in the soundtrack for “El Camino”, the Netflix Breaking Bad film directed by Vince Gilligan, in 2019. If you have known the album, “Red Snapper”(2013), the stoic and dark synesthetic cinematic elements could easily explain why their music has been selected for the soundtracks.
Recent remix work for the Japanese electronic music artist, aus is a remarkable organic blend of electronic melodious tapestry which is also worth listening to. It has been great to capture how their time apart glows more in the diverse industry since the regroup.
This time, Red Snapper released the live album, “Live at the Moth Club” in London. It is like their best album by live performance and enhancement of their firm musical development. The album cover has a nice raw graphic art with matted black and red based reminiscent of the actual ambient of the album sound.
By listening to it throughout the album, it was enjoyable to sink into a laid back groove and the dynamic of live performance flowed smoothly with the edge of punk, dub, trip hop, and spiritual jazz elements mezzanine your listening sense.
This live album would be a great soundtrack for driving and especially Red Snapper’s music style (“groove ride” it is) brings a sense of sonic experience : as if you are on a road trip from refined urban on a dark highway to unknown red earth to find your own oasis like finding a right spot on a dance floor, jazz club, or being in own element with the prefect texture.
The track “Wonky Bikes” has a good dry percussion sound as a core element followed by nice wonky guitar makes funky swamp ripples that sinks into a psychedelic rock world.
It is really exciting to listen to how tight and flowing the sounds are particularly the tracks, “B Planet” and “Tarzan” : sounds and rhymes flow perfectly in synchronized to make the groove and take us to the exploration of club music through a spiritual jazz journey. The album is like a little educational experience of club culture in fusion, funk, and jazz elements.
Bass-line is also a very nice feature particularly on one of their great tracks, “Hot Flush”. And how grateful to hear the tribute comment on the co-producer Andrew Weatherall who was the great DJ and producer from 90’s to recent UK club music, sadly passed away in 2020 and still missed and respected by many across the globe.
Notable that the band’s style of playing tracks seems to be featured on an intro as a storyline and the minimal style ensemble has a nice consistency, gradually spreading out like a tapestry along with MC and vocal as storytelling. MC has a uniquely empathic wisdom for Mother Earth and today’s society. The lyrics playfully flow through music that also shows Red Snapper adapts and improvises in a wide range of music genres make it as “Red Snapper” organically.
This live album indeed has a profound stability of skill that would be able to take you to the Moth Club, as well as it is certainly the really good outcomes of PA, engineers, and the band’s craftsmanship.
The album has an overall good stable sound and of course well worth listening to. Also since this is a live album, it would be ideal to experience both listening to the album as well as being at the actual dynamics, edge, density of the physical acoustic and sound in a venue. Red Snapper is about to start their short UK tour and it is perfect timing to experience both.
Red Snapper UK LIVE DATES (Location Reference):
NOV 02ND THE JAM JAR, BRISTOL
NOV 03RD THE FERRET, PRESTON
NOV 04TH THE GOLDEN LION, TODMORDEN
NOV 15TH THE FORUM, TUNBRIDGE WELLS
NOV 16TH THE CORN EXCHANGE, HEREFORD
NOV 17TH RAMSGATE MUSIC HALL, RAMSGATE
NOV 18TH RICH MIX, LONDON E1
