Siapiau – Pi – 161CD (2023)
Discus Music
Sheffield UK
Now available
Album review by Rob Harrison
Siapiau, is Welsh for “shapes” as the four members of the band attempt to create shapes in the air out of apparently nothing. And so weave their improvisational spell so to speak.
The band came together in September 2021, at a gathering for improvisation musicians in South Wales. Hence the Welsh name. Phil hargreaves had known Maggie Nicols for a few years but it was the Welsh connection that cemented the idea for this project .
All members of the band have a vocal credit on the album. So we could be confident in describing it as linguistically driven ( there’s poetry in it )
The band are Maggie Nicols, Voice, Keyboard, Phil hargreaves Tenor Sax, Flute, voice Richard Harrison, Drums / Percussion, Voice Fran, Bass, you guessed it voice. All play little instruments but we are unfortunately left to ponder what they might be .
The album that’s presented within, has distinct neo dada connentations. With titles like Approximately Diagonal; and feasting with Panthers The vocal presentations by Maggie Nicols have a distinct nod and a wink to the dada poetry of Kurt Schwitters .
The first track “In Eternam” begins in a poetic manner, with a serious free jazz intervention by Phil hargreaves after the first few minutes. This, though, adds to the sense of musical play on the album. And from that. moving the recording away from just another free jazz excursion
I feel, listening to this recording, I’m miraculously taken back in time. To 1973, rather than 2023. The music produced by Siapiau transports you to a different musical world. That of the experimental seventies. A time of political rock or jazz. The music produced by some at this time would be a hotchpotch of poetry, jazz and music concrete.
These bands then, the ones that dared to cross the musical divide such as Slap Happy, Henry Cow and Matching Mole I feel that Siapiau are now carrying the torch for the kind of music these pioneering bands developed .
The bands at the time were classified as Prog rock but can now be seen as forerunners of what became known as Art Rock. This became shorthand for please file under I can’t possibly classify or something like that.
I draw a line or a distinction between these bands and groups like Art And Language. As they set out to destroy music, by putting a luddite stick into the musical spokes. They wanted to be the wreckers of civilization. And created what could be called anti music as a way of being against what could be considered good taste.
Alternatively in siapiau the playing is excellent throughout. The Voice sax and drums come together to create an interesting ( can I say ) musical mix? There is an especially big shout out to the bass player Fran, who holds it all together. This is a conundrum of course for free jazz I know, but Fran picks out her notes like a mountain goat finding its way up a rocky hillside, each hoof delicately laid down securely .
So enjoy this new recording from Siapiau just like Robert Plant in Kashmir. I’m a traveller in both time and space .