Album Review: Conspiracy Deliracy from Andrew Binder

Album:  Conspiracy Deliracy
Artist:  Andrew Binder
Label:  Self-Released
Website:  andrewbindermusic.com

Conspiracy Deliracy, the creation of bass player, composer and leader Andrew Binder, makes interesting commentaries about American culture both conceptually and musically.  A fusion of bop, blues, funk, improvisation, and cool jazz, many of the arrangements are reharmonized contrafacts, reimagining original works and revealing the inner workings of Binder's mind and ingenuity.  His music makes commentaries about current events and popular impressions fashioned from whittling improvised phrases, structured motifs and bop-inspired patterns that bridge traditional jazz with a modern day mindset.

Examining “Mandela Effect,” named after South Africa's late president, Nelson Mandela, who died in 2013, the music is a light, fluffy assemble as the delicate feathering of Brian Stark's flute is encircled by Binder's soft bass pluckings. “Rush for Area 51” is stylized vastly differently, emanating ominous tones and dissonant phrasing in Stark's saxophone.  Inspired by a moment in time that took place on September 20, 2019, when a group of individuals attempted to uncover what secrets are being conducted at Area 51 in Neveda, a notorious testing ground for the US Air Force.  Binder's characterization of this moment leaves the listener with an eerie sense of discomfort.

Proceeding deeper, "Moonwalk" is a congenial arrangement as the gentle tremors of Binder's bass are layered in the plump chirping of Frank Niemeyer's trombone and the cool rustle of Jose Gubbo's guitar.  The brushed strokes of Maxwell Osawa's drumming fodder the easy listening atmosphere of “Dark Side of the Mattress Firm” as Stark's flute flitters breezily across the track.  Though the arrangement is described in the press release as being motivated by "the conspiracy that Mattress Firm is a money laundering scheme," the music puts the listener at ease throughout the melody, even as guitarist Niemeyer enlivens the tempo to a mirthful simmer.

Binder's music is often bright and amenable to the listener's sensibilities.  The musical parts fit cohesively into place as the musicians draw from Binder's lead. His commentaries on cultural events and popular perceptions are expressed through melodic patterns that are readable and perceivable by the audience's mind.  

Musicians:
Andrew Binder - bass
Justin Dyar - trumpet
Brian Stark - saxophones & flute
Frank Niemeyer - trombone
Jose Gobbo - guitar
Kurt Reeder - keyboards
Maxwell Osawa - drums