Burnt Friedman and Daniel Dodd-Ellis have previous, working together on one of Friedman’s previous albums, ‘First Night Forever’. This outing is much more of a collaboration though, taking Aldous Huxley’s ‘Brave New World’ as a starting point and working some of its text into speech above Friedman’s largely ambient but experimental productions. There is gallows humour at work here, especially in the recurring title track with its airy piano, and there are loosely improvised strands that work well when heard in the middle foreground, where the mind can zone in to specific bits of text and music and then zone out again. Friedman never rambles in his music, but with Daniel Dodd-Ellis he’s found a really good creative sparring partner, making a meaningful piece of work that is thought provoking as well as relaxing.
4 out of 5
Reviewed by Ben Hogwood
