John Mailander’s Forecast

Let the World In

Self-released

John Mailander, fiddler extraordinaire and multi-instrumentalist as well, is a member of Bruce Hornsby & the Noisemakers but is also an acclaimed performer, producer, composer, educator, and band leader in his own right. He’s assembled this band, Forecast” to deliver this stirring, genreless mix. This is the spiritual third in a trilogy of Forecast albums, about thirty minutes of mostly instrumental, string-based, largely improvised music, almost like one continuous suite. Mailander plays fiddle, keys, and eclectronics with Ethan Jodziewicz on upright and fretless electric bass, Chris Lippincott on steel guitars, keys, and electronics, Mark Raudabaugh on drums, Jake Stargel on acoustic guitar, and David Williford on tenor saxophone and bass clarinet. Mailander sings on the epic closing track, “Road,” a Nick Drake cover.  The album is exploratory, psychedelic, connected throughout, and at times mind-bending.

The title track is led by Mailander’s fiddle, initially sounding like an Appalachian tune before morphing into something more elusive with a blend of keys, fiddle, percussion, acoustic guitar, bass clarinet, and electronics, building to a glorious crescendo that recedes, only to build back. “Gardener” yields haunting string harmonics, much darker than the title may imply, capped by “Improvisation 1.” These are cinematic tracks that conjure a myriad of imagery, earthy and otherworldly both. “Chapters” is a through-composed piece with the rhythm section laying down a steady groove for Mailander’s fiddle, which grows more intense before surrendering to a series of ostinato piano chords. The highly melodic “Heartland,” has an ancient Celtic quality, not unlike the music of Mark Knopfler or even some of Hornsby’s work. While most of the others which thrive on largely blended sonics, this features solos on guitar, fiddle, and bass, punctuated with well-placed piano notes and chords.

The fiddle-percussion duet, “Improvisation 2” leads into the epic “Road,” set to droning strings over which we hear we hear rather indistinct vocals from Mailander. Yet the self-reflective, contemplative eventually grows to joyous jam, a more celebratory tone than otherwise heard leading up to this track.  The band is clearly locked into a special zone, enhanced by echoing effects and subtle exchanges between the musicians. They know where they’re headed, but as a listener, we are captivated but not at all sure of the destination, which gets blurrier as it unwinds. The closing “Reprise,” is surprisingly rather minimalist in comparison.

One needs to listen to this transportive album in its entirety. It will take you to many places, those places changing on repeat listens.

– Jim Hynes

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