Metal Chaos Ensemble - Forgings Review

By Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery

METAL CHAOS ENSEMBLE- Introducing... Sunshine! (Evil Clown 9071; USA) Featuring PEK on saxes, clarinets, double reeds, theremin & electronics, Greg Grinnell on electronics, laptop, trumpet & sax, Kenny Maurais on bass & metal, Kevin Dacey on drums, theremin, mbira & hulusi and Yuri Zbitnov on drums & metal. Recorded at Evil Clown studio in July of 2015. The Metal Chaos Ensemble are Dave PEK's other evolving unit besides Leap of Faith.

We've listed about 10 discs from Metal Chaos as opposed to the 50+ by LoF.The name of this ensemble is appropriate since everyone does plays metal (gongs, cymbals, chains, etc.) plus all of their music is free or chaotic sounding. The first section features mostly drums and metals, spacious at first and then slowly picking up in intensity. This is one of the more low-key Metal Chaos sets but it does build into more intense, spirited sections. This disc is perhaps the only one from Metal Chaos that has a few more relaxed sections which show that this band is not always nightmarish as they seem. I guess there is some "sunshine" at the end of the tunnel here, as the title indicates. The suspense here is well constructed and well-placed.
- Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG

Review:

Metal Chaos Ensemble

- Introducing... ...Sunshine!!

Photos by Raffi

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On Leap of Faith: "Alien yet familiar, bizarre yet completely fascinating. Expanding, contracting, erupting, settling down, always as one force..." - Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG

On Metal Chaos Ensemble: "... using unique strategies to yield densely active and eerily surreal music, an incredible excursion through experimental improvisation." - Squidco website staff