BY CHAD BOSWELL
Staff Writer
On May 28th, 2021, English rock band Black Midi released their second studio album titled “Cavalcade”. Black Midi is a progressive/experimental, math rock band that consists of lead singer frontman and guitarist Geordie Greep, bass guitarist and backup singer Cameron Picton, and drummer Morgan Simpson. Cavalcade is the band’s second LP following right after the release of their debut album “Schlagenheim”. Cavalcade follows a very interesting theme to the album while also having their prog/math rock elements in the album.
Cavalcade follows a series of genres going from Jazz Fusion to Math rock between every track. One thing I like about Black Midi is that the artwork for their projects is made by David Rudnick, a great and talented guy and the artwork that he makes for the covers of these albums is really interesting.
All three of these covers for Black Midi’s albums are very unique and interesting and David Rudnick did a very good job on them. They make me appreciate the music so much more because each cover represents the theme of the album.
Cavalcade goes from really fast music with extreme guitar riffs to slower-paced songs which really makes the record unique. Cavalcade has that unique feel to it and the progressive and math rock element really stands out on this but also makes really good transitions into the slower-paced Jazz songs that throw you off while listening to it. Cavalcade also brings in other people to help work on the album. For example, Seth Evans plays keyboards and synths while there is Kaidi Akinnibi who is an amazing saxophone player. Both Seth and Kaidi really stand out on Cavalcade which makes the music even better. Cavalcade is a mixture of crazy saxophone playing and guitar riffs to slow guitar songs with mild drumming. Cavalcade is a project that represents uniqueness and beauty but is also weird as well, it’s hard to make a direct theme for this project because everything is out of place but also flows really well together. Some of my favorite tracks from this record are “Marlene Dietrich, Dethroned, Slow, Chondromalacia Patella, and Ascending Forth” but every track is amazing. Going back to the fast/slow songs switching off each other for example the intro track to Cavalcade is titled “John L” which is a fast-paced song with crazy instruments and fast-paced drums, but then the second track on the record following right after John L is “Marlene Dietrich” which is the complete opposite of John L. Marlene Dietrich is a slow-paced song with soft vocals from Geordie and slow guitar playing which makes me really love this record.
Overall this album may not be my favorite from Black Midi but it still is perfect and unique in its own way. Overall, I give this record a solid 10/10.