For a go-to drummer like Nathan ‘Tugg’ Curran (see Basement Jaxx, Kano, Gorgon City and more) those recent pandemic times could have felt like a grinding pause but rather than kicking back he used the space to re-energise his own music. From Curran’s foundations of dancefloor syncopation, techno templates, future jazz visions and funk fuelled escapism, the band Planet Battagon emerged.
Powered by vintage drum machines and sharp brass connectivity, this project shook up jazz rave territories with the seismic 2020 LP ‘Trans Neptunia’, then morphed into Tugg’s next choice of musical transportation, Edrix Puzzle. Joining Curran plus fellow Battagon dwellers Oli Savill (percussion) and Martin Slattery (Bass clarinet and sax), the Puzzle has been completed by the addition of Tom Mason on acoustic bass and classical violinist Darren Berry. From the outset, with the release of their ‘Rise To Eris’ EP last year, it was clear that Edrix Puzzle were boldly going further, taking multi-coloured acoustic tones, scorching beats and synth ballistics deeper into orbit alongside Sun-Ra, Mwandishi-era Hancock and Richard James.
So news of their next excursion, an Edrix Puzzle debut album ‘Coming Of The Moon Dogs’, via On The Corner Records from November 4th, is going to send turntablists scrambling for those vantage points. Promising to extend the exploration of improv-inspired reactions to fluid, out-front, bass-pumped grooves, ‘Coming Of The Moon Dogs’ looks set to join the dots from cosmic jazz beginnings right up to the Comet Is Coming and beyond.
If you want some further hints then try the now-streaming first single from the LP ‘V 11’, Blasting off to synth siren warning calls and an urgent trip hop vibe, it’s a track that erupts into riff driven urgency with full-on Mahavishnu commitment. Jabbing afro-beat percussion, rumbling bass muscle and a soaring sax trajectory pile on the pressure until a nimble rhythmic coda restores some sort of order. To say ‘V 11’ is an announcement is an understatement, it’s fusion that’s out to blow fuses and brings a warning – ‘Coming Of The Moon Dogs’ is not to be missed.
Pre-order your copy of ‘Coming Of The Moon Dogs’ by Edrix Puzzle direct from: https://edrixpuzzle.bandcamp.com/album/coming-of-the-moon-dogs
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