Inner Ear Brigade - Perkunas (2024) [Hi-Res]

Here’s something in 2024 worth celebrating without reservation or caveat or vague dread that it might go away: a new album from Inner Ear Brigade. It’s been a long time since Dromology, but Perkunas is proof that the band not only still exists, but still has all of the qualities that made that album so great. The band’s mainstays are Bill Wolter (guitar, keyboards) and Ivor Holloway (saxophone, EWI), who have been part of the project since the first album in 2011, and Chris Lauf (drums, percussion), who was with them on Dromology. Many other musicians also take part, some of whom have appeared on previous recordings, though not on every track: Jason Hoope (bass), Stephen Wright (bass), Andrew Vernon (keyboards), Aharon Wheels Bolsta (percussion), Eli Wallace (keyboards), Melody Ferris (vocals), Madeline Tasquin (vocals), Alison Niedbalski (vocals), Shayna Dunkleman (percussion), Jordan Glenn (drums), Curtis McKinney (bass), Max Stoffregen (keyboards), and Charith Premawardhana (viola). Stylistically, IEB is in a class of their own, with complex compositions reminiscent of other avant progressive bands like Thinking Plague, Cheer-Accident, and MoeTar, but also a tinge of jazz in the same way that Canterbury bands like National Health and Hatfield and the North did it. The result is thoroughly engaging, and a joy for fans of intelligent music that also connects emotionally. The musicianship is stellar all around, and the compositions, mostly by Wolter, with some contributions from Holloway and Niedbalski, are wonderfully convoluted without being difficult or inaccessible. In the world of progressive rock that isn’t descended from the symphonic rock of the past, Perkunas is one of the standout releases of the year. Don’t let anyone tell you that music isn’t as good as it used to be.