Curha - I, II, III (Chant Records, 2018, 2020, 2022)

    One of the most inspiring projects I've encountered during my time in NYC, Curha represents the splattered contents from the mind of multi-instrumentalist and composer, Curtis Hasselbring. While the live incarnation of Hasselbring's group is exhilarating in its own right, the three expansive album releases are where this music is best represented. Hasselbring, with some exceptions, is responsible for every sound on these recordings. It's frankly mind-boggling and each set has its own peculiar identity and curation as well. Taken together, this is some of the most innovative and satisfying work being made right now. I'm even told there may be a fourth offering released in the near future. 

    Coming to these albums, Hasselbring has been primarily renowned as a first rate trombonist and innumerable examples can be found over 3 decades of appearances with Either/Orchestra, Slavic Soul Party, George Adams and Medeski, Martin and Wood to name a few. He also leads various other ensembles under his own name including perhaps the biggest precursor to Curha, The New Mellow Edwards. Some of that repertoire has found its way into the live sets of Curha, in fact. Curha I, II and III feature the most striking expressions of Hasselbring's artistic personality to date. I could spend multiple paragraphs just touching on some of the stylistic influences and reference points on these albums, but just to give you an idea, the experience visits points of exotica, video game soundtracks, EDM, chamber pop, horror scores a la John Carpenter, surf rock, Madchester-era Brit-pop, Cumbia, psych, prog-rock, concrete, new wave and often times, symbols of all these approaches intersect and combine in single tracks. 

    "I", released in 2018, is the most quirky of the three. For one thing, it has no guests. There are unique aspects to the production here which parallel similar independently produced music by artists like Prince, Trent Reznor and Kate Bush. This whole set is immediately and  undeniably fun throughout. The strongest cuts, the hyperactive, looping "Respect the Pedestrian" and the Pixies-esque "Ana-Lo" stuck firmly in my brain for weeks upon first listen. Make no mistake, while Hasselbring's writing is unpredictable and novel, you will hum some of this music in the shower too. Extra-special shout-out for basing the track "Madgit" around a personal favorite piece entitled "Gay Disco" by a fellow NY-based (now Berlin) free spirit in saxophonist Andrew D'Angelo. Imagine a subway tunnel rave jointly MC-ed by the Avalanches and Prodigy and you get sort of close to the shenanigans involved. 

    "II" is a bit more ensemble-centered and concise in terms of pop-song focussed structures and vibe. There are frequent detours though. Tracks like the somewhat unsettling "Blimp Enthusiast", which recalls some of the weirder moments of Brian Eno's 70s songs or the Berlin-style sequencers crossed with glitchy, bit-crushed vocal loops with on the following piece "Blaster" demonstrate that the more bizarre spots fit comfortably within the general thrust of the rest of the album. Hasselbring provides a massive space for all these qualities and his virtuosic ability to recall and command such an eclectic menagerie of aesthetics makes for fascinating listening. Other highlights for me include the dubby trip-hop atmosphere on "MMS" as well as the boldly modern closer, "Blown Bubble Blues". Writing that last sentence, I was reminded to mention that one of the unifying qualities of these things is humor. Every song has a moment that will surely crack you up, whether it's a trait of the writing or arrangements or even just titles. 

    On "III", we get a more-or-less equal hybrid of experimental bouquets like the Spacey, Industrial-tinged grooves on "Bee Alley" and more explicit stylistic juxtapositions as displayed on tracks like "Grilla' Beach Mountain" which answers the question "what if Stockhausen wrote a samba?" Going in feeling safe under the expectation that these particular will confine itself to their respective initial sonic environments will make the later subversions hit with more of a shock. There are many surprises like that throughout the entirety of "III" and often enough, these specific gestures demonstrate a real authority of more strict, contrapuntal and harmonic knowledge on the part of Hasselbring. Each examples of seemingly odd-fitting musical combinations felt like it could be a lesson in song-craft. What's more impressive is that for all the content and activity going on, I never found any single point that some ingredient was misplaced or distracting. For instance, on "Library of Infinite Calamity" we are brought in with a Goth-y synth dance vibe but this contains a nested departure involving dissonant strings and piano which feels like it could have been written by John Cage. A similar moment occurs during the knotty fugue on "The Gravity" giving way to a frame drum and organ centered groove. 

    If any of this writing perks up your antennae, know that the descriptions barely cover all the stuff on each of these recordings. I'm very excited to receive another entry to the Curha catalog this year, if he is feeling generous. Each album provides an ever vivid, evocative and rich experience with many neon colors and sharp twists There are countless rewards for ears and brains which stay engaged from start to finish. Samples of each set can be found below.