Deviant Shakti
Michael Evans & LaDonna Smith
Hunter Bell, Omniplug blogspot, 21, 2009
For all of you that know LaDonna Smith, you may –and even must– know that you will not know what you will hear and experience. For me, that’s a very good thing. I like to be in the dark. I like to be on the other side. That is, at least I know when LaDonna Smith plays her viola and violin that I will be taken to another side. That being said, the new CD by Michael Evans and LaDonna Smith does not disappoint.
Improvisational music can be difficult for some to digest. Sometimes it takes a little extra “nudge” and effort to comprehend. However, this new recording is more accessible than many so-called “noise” recordings. The duo are pros at what they create. And they are way ahead of current sound experiments.
This recording is hypnotizing. It is a glorification of strings and percussive output that stings deep inside the eardrums connecting to the psyche.
“Tenacious Rebel Autarchy” pulls the Appalachian Hills and Mountains and fills with a sense of careful and subdued chaos. Chaos is not the focus. It may be the outcome. But solitude is in the moment. It is a reflection of a distant relative . . . a missed opportunity.
“Atomized Ascension” erodes the very best of anyone’s soul. The piece is creepy and hard to hold on to. It’s a song to forget your long lost lovers. Evans’ percussive beats haunt and hinder for the most chilling accompanying to the stings Smith puts forth
Deviant Shakti is a CD for the meek and agonized. But the concept is for the uplifting, caring and hopeful society.
Make this disk a part of your collective experience.