Chicago’s Mako Sica are in no hurry. They aren’t terribly interested in giant crescendos or massive riffs. This (mostly) instrumental band, consisting of Michael Kendrick on percussion, Przemyslaw Drazek on guitar and trumpet and Brent Fuscaldo occasionally on vocals, utilize an array of instruments such as guitar, congas and something known as a thumb piano to instead explore the space between said crescendos and riffs.

Their debut, Mayday At Strobe, out on Permanent Record’s house label, their 9th such release, was recording live at Strobe Recording and that live setting gives the record a strange, distant vibe that at times, in concert with the moaning vocals, reaches some pretty dark places.

But by no means is this a Sunn0))) record, although again that reference has some merit. You don’t put on Sunn0))) looking for instant gratification, and the two songs on the Mayday At Strobe, W and Red Rivers, clock in at 15:25 and 11:45 respectively, so time is required to fully wrap your head around the music. The thing is, even in a post-Mogwai or Sigur Ros world, this record is an anomaly. There are few traditional “payoffs”. W is the heavier of the two, with a sense of doom laying low beneath rough-edged guitar lines but it decends into a void for minutes before returning. Red Rivers is more loose but even when the tempo picks up with an almost Middle Eastern disco vibe, it just as quickly breaks off into a rambling, stumbling, droning ending.

And that’s the thing about this record: it wants to both slowly grow and build around you while at the same time keep you totally off balance. I have the natural tendency, as you may know, to look for comparisons to other bands, to see influences. At times the jammy qualities lead me to say Santana if Santana were cool. This reference troubles me too much, though. There’s obviously a Middle Eastern thing going on and, if you listen really closely, you’ll hear a faint hint of Yes’s spacey side. But none of this truly suffices because, despite these hints, you won’t know what to tell your friends.

That’s the brilliance of Mayday At Strobe. Mako Sica live in a world all their own. They are a band that seem more about what they are not doing than what they are. I’m not sure how to convince you that this is a good thing beyond saying you’ve probably never heard much like it. They are experimental without going so far out that you don’t want to come back. They are beautiful but just as willing to let their songs completely fall apart. And somehow they have a sound that is both intimate and totally expansive. It all adds up to a pretty exciting listen that you might find yourself going back to just as soon as it ends.

Note: This review was for the vinyl release. I was told for fidelity purposes Permanent decided to only release two of the four songs recorded at the session. They do, however, include a free download of the entire session with purchase.
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Catch Mako Sica Saturday, November 21, at the The Hideout. Tickets are available right now at Ticketweb.com for $5!
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