Mad Music - Mad Music (Drag City)

Drag City does it again—they find an amazing privately released jewel, one that stuns for its beauty, and one that, thirty years after its creation, still sounds ahead of its time. This time, it’s a mysterious collective known as Mad Music. The band is completely anonymous—no information is given or offered, and rumors abound as to it being under contract musicians in the late 70s, getting together and letting off steam by simply recording sounds, without necessarily creating a record for public consumption. That’s certainly plausible, as the music here is simple, stirring piano-based instrumentals, all untitled, and many of the songs being less than two minutes in length. Some songs are simply a piano; others have minor accompaniment, but all of them straddle a line between New Age and Classical, not sounding out of place for Windham Hill fans, and those who appreciate the quieter, more sublime moments of Harold Budd and Brian Eno‘s 1980s work. Listen to it during the day for relaxation purposes, and listen to it at night with headphones for a blossoming aural experience. My favorite moment? A softly-strummed sitar with a heavenly voice singing along. I won’t tell you where it is—but that it’s there, and it’s one of the many delightful surprises offered on Mad Music.