For
Off White
,
James Chance
, a veteran of New York's
avant-garde
no wave
scene, recast his seminal band
the Contortions
as a parody of a
soul
band, albeit one incorporating the rhythms of
disco
and
funk
rather than
R&B
. Thus,
Chance
became
James White
(as a nod to
James Brown
),
the Blacks
, and his music, previously a twisted,
experimental
brand of avant-
jazz
, became a
/
/free
hybrid. As bizarre as the fusion of
Albert Ayler
Giorgio Moroder
might sound,
works primarily because
commits to both sides of the music. The
rhythms, especially on
"Almost Black, Pt. 1"
"Contort Yourself"
are as pounding as anything
Casablanca
ever released (even the production is slick and polished), while his sax solos on both those tracks are squawks and bleats that would scare off all but the most committed
hipsters. He even attempts
calypso
on
"(Tropical) Heat Wave,"
mixing a languid island rhythm with intricate blasts of noise. By carefully constructing his music with such polar opposites,
manages to highlight how both of them have more similarities, especially in rhythm, than would appear at first listen.
may be an acquired taste, but listeners who dig into it will have their patience rewarded with some of the most challenging, intriguing music to emerge from the
post-punk
era. ~ Victor W. Valdivia