Osmosi

Osmosi is a collage by three virtuoso Italian jazz-rock instrumentalists (Fabio Marconi, Alberto Pederneschi and Ivo Barbieri), blending styles from the east and south side of the Mediterranean Sea.

‘Yaram Sızlar Agrir Basım’ is from Şanlıurfa, south-east Turkey, the fretless guitar effortlessly emulating the Turkish saz. In ‘Elif Dedim Be Dedim’, originally from west Turkey, things get more electric, with an ostinato funky bass and a solo guitar with flanger sound-effect (think 60s and 70s guitarists like Barry Melton and Jorma Kaukonen), leading to an ecstatic climax. ‘Kırmızı Paltolu Kız’ again is Turkish, by pianist Yiğit Özatalay, pushing the album even closer to jazz-rock spheres. Think John Scofield or Stanley Jordan, and these Italian musicians stand the comparison! ‘Eklil’ from Dhafer Youssef’s first album Malik, originally for oud which sounded like a sitar, gets electrified by Marconi’s guitar with Barbieri’s electric bass as counterpoint, while Alberto Pederneschi plays the drums with hands. ‘Besa Shqiptare’ is a traditional Albanian composition adopting complex rhythms and meters reaching incredible speed levels. ‘Ubiquity’ once more carries us somewhat back to the 60s and 70s, making us realise how timeless King Crimson was. But again, this is not to suggest that the Osmosi Trio’s mix is not highly original and refreshing, because it is.