The Lions We Are

Atmospheric and cinematic, The Lions We Are is a journey across spaces and sensations. Permeated by a playful experimentalism, this second album from DANTCHEV:DOMAIN seeks a singular place in the musical landscape. Here, Bulgarian tradition and European folk sensibilities meet a contemporary pop production, rock aesthetics, jazz nuances, and sweeping, trancy ambience.

Tightly constructed arrangements, played by an unconventional, versatile quintet, allow the album to swing from one sonic world to another, if a little jarringly at times. Funky, bouncing riffs dissolve into spacey song and fiery trombone improvisation; gentle guitar is underlaid with a soft, twinkling vibraphone; soaring vocals ride over delicately driving percussion, distorted guitar and punchy brass. The small but rich brass section stands out, adding a depth of texture and emotion, with noteworthy playing from trombonist Erno Haukkala. Across the ensemble, instrumentalists demonstrate astute sensitivity, balancing density and space, delicacy and power. This is echoed in vocals from Anna Dantchev, the Bulgarian-Finnish composer, vocalist and tupan drummer at the head of the project. Her lyrics, like their musical context, are atmospheric and evocative, rather than prescriptive. This is a record that invites listeners to voyage with the band, and to construe their own meanings as they do.