9 Dead Alive [Bonus Edition]

by Rodrigo y Gabriela

Overview

Rodrigo y Gabriela's 9 Dead Alive is their first album of new material in five years. Written, arranged, and co-produced by the pair, they deliberately attempt to forgo the Latin influence in their music in favor of an all-rock (albeit still acoustic) approach -- which marks a return to their pre-recording roots in heavy metal. (That they don't entirely succeed is part of what makes 9 Dead Alive so compelling.) Each tune was composed for a different inspiration: authors, philosophers, activists, scientists, and a queen. The set was exquisitely recorded in Mexico by Fermin Vasquez Llera. There isn't a dull moment in these 41 minutes. "The Soundmaker," for 19th century luthier and guitarist Antonio de Torres Jurado, commences with Rodrigo's knotty riff and Gabriela's chugging rhythmic vamp. Two things are immediately apparent: that their collective playing style owes much to heavy metal -- where they came from before studying flamenco -- and, divorced from its bombast, metal is steeped in lyricism. "Torito," with its careening interscalar soloing and riffs, possesses some of Gabriela's most inventive rhythmic technique, slapping and frenetically strumming her guitar with controlled, yet passionate, aggression in dialogue and argument with his leads. Her cross-cut syncopations drive Rodrigo's attack and melodic inventions in "Misty Moses" (for Harriet Tubman), a tune that changes directions several times and shifts its central harmonic focus with dazzling clarity. "Somnium" (inspired by 17th century writer, feminist, and nun Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz) employs twinned, stacked melodies that move from allegrissimo to presto, and employ reverse arpeggiato, all the while overflowing with emotional resonance. On "The Russian Messenger," Gabriela creates a menacing rhythmic attack of palm slaps on the wood of her instrument, interspersed with slashing minor sevenths; Rodrigo counters with delicacy in a flurry of lithe single notes. On "Megalopolis" (for poet Gabriela Mistral), Spanish music comes shining through in gloriously articulated fingerpicking, doubled melody lines, and a narrative structure that recalls Spanish folk music. "La Salle des Pas Perdus (for Eleanor of Aquitaine) articulates musical themes from her "art of courtly love" era in the melody. The two guitars fluidly exchange tightly woven lines in nearly songlike interplay (here too, Anglo and Spanish lyricism entwine) before tempo and tension briefly increase, then dissipate elegantly. The dialogue that transpires throughout 9 Dead Alive is lively, eloquent, and actively intellectual, but it is also intimate. Between them, Rodrigo y Gabriela engage in musical and even cultural queries, and sometimes -- provocatively -- leave them wide open. This album evidences an expanded creative reach for the pair, even as it re-engages the sharp edges they displayed on earlier recordings. [The bonus edition contains a DVD that features a "making of" documentary, live at Red Rocks footage, in-studio performances of album tracks, and a 30-minute tutorial from each guitarist.] ~ Thom Jurek

Product Details

Release Date:	04/29/2014
Label:	Ato
UPC:	0880882201623
Rank:	94430

Tracks

Disc 1

1. The Soundmaker
2. Torito
3. Sunday Neurosis
4. Misty Moses
5. Somnium
6. FRAM
7. Megalopolis
8. The Russian Messenger
9. La Salle des Pas Perdus

Disc 2

10. [Bonus Material]

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Rodrigo y Gabriela   Primary Artist
Sadhguru   Spoken Word
Richard Dawkins   Spoken Word
Ram Dass   Spoken Word

Technical Credits

Ram Dass   Composer
Sadhguru   Composer
Olallo Rubio   Liner Notes
Jennifer Nielsen   English Translations
Fermin Vasquez Llera   Engineer
Eugene Serebrennikov   Artwork
Gabriela Quintero   Composer
Rodrigo Sanchez   Composer
Richard Dawkins   Composer
Rodrigo y Gabriela   Composer
Chris Bellman   Mastering
Andrew Scheps   Mixing