Yeominrok

Although ostensibly a fusion outfit, the South Korean quintet E-Do still sound predominantly traditional in their plundering. Two percussionists and an electric bassist provide a foundation for the contributions of Kyung-hwa Ryu (on chulhyungeum and janggu) and Young-sup Lee (on daegeum and taepyeongso). The chulhyungeum is a rarely heard iron-stringed zither and the janggu is an hour-glass drum struck at both ends; the daegeum is flute-like and the taepyeongso a double-reed pipe. Those iron strings ping above an ambient thrum on the opening ‘Bird of Oblivion’: almost 14 minutes of suite-like development, with both bass and flute providing the sustained notes.

A cantering pace predominates on most of the pieces, set by the spread of small drums. The second tune (‘Road’) has anthemic qualities that make it sound slightly stiff, and ‘The Brave Moonlight’ trounces it with some spiky chulhyungeum picking and a harder wind sound on the taepyeongso. Tae-young Kim provides a vocal with vibrato on the next tune, and vibrato is the key feature with this ensemble, whatever its instrumental conduit. The best piece is ‘Bohoeja’, ironically because it's the simplest and most direct, spotlighting those iron strings to powerful effect, with a continuing tension provided by the constant trotting of background percussion.