Nostalgia 77 & The Monsters - Measures (2014)

Measures is the second album from the Nostalgia 77 & The Monster guise, bringing a flavoursome take on instrumental jazz. The collection of songs sees Ben Lamdin's long time collaborator, bass player and arranger Riaan Vosloo stepping to the fore, bringing six original compositions. The album also contains nods to the two dominant influences on this group over the years, in renditions of Sun Ra''s otherworldly An Island In The Sun and British firebrand (and previous Nostalgia 77 collaborator) Keith Tippett's Thoughts To Geoff. Nostalgia 77 and the Monster is the second incarnation of the Nostalgia 77 Live band, his original Nostalgia 77 Octet having been disbanded after the death of drummer Graham Fox. Lamdin and Vosloos aim was to produce an album ranging from the chaotic to the meditative. On Measures, Vosloo's writing strikes a delicate balance between strong themes and free space for the improvisers - a perfect canvas for the impressive cast of Kit Downes (piano), James Allsopp (reeds), Fulvio Sigurta (trumpet), Tim Giles (drums) and Vosloo himself on bass. The record captures the fiery fluidity of the bands live performances.