Black Blizzard

There is a maximalist undercurrent to “Black Blizzard” that gives the album a colorful, if sometimes chaotic kind of glow. That chaos is entirely intentional mind you, a path well paved by Flying Lotus or Nobukazu Takemura, forming a delightful rainbow of melodies and textures that cohere into a dynamic composition. All that said, there are plenty of moments of calm, a feat that manages to still employ the maximalist “more-is-more” philosophy to a rather relaxed beat, which makes for an interesting listen on headphones. As such, there is a lot going on with these tracks, and plenty more than just a lot of different sonic textures. Black Blizzard is a haven for microtones and polyrhythms, for challenging music unencumbered by the ballast of academia — smart music made to be as inclusive as it is exceptional.