Jazzeast

A decade had passed and yet it seemed like no band will ever come close to Loose Tubes legacy. The Tubes music was a fresh burst of sunshine on an otherwise gloomy British music scene when they introduced the likes of Django Bates, the Arguelles brother, and Iain Ballamy. However, it seems like someone will be following their footsteps soon.

Boasting of 32 members, mostly symphony players, Io dwarfs the other performers on their field when it comes to numbers. Even though the performances of the jazz soloist of the orchestra are not up to par yet, the ensemble playing and writing of their music are remarkably promising.

Usually, string sections of jazz ensembles sound like they’re bolted on. However, Io changes all this. The strings render exuberant passages that later temper down to more classical figures meeting the languorous chords of the tenor-sax, while a free-improvise flute sings a perfect piece to weave the song together. The percussion section brings all the pieces together, and with a steady beat, lifts the whole set to make the most wonderful of sounds. The most predictable parts are the riff-writing and the rendition of Latin Jazz.

This is not all as Io’s potential can be clearly seen on their more open pieces. A quiet flute or a clarinet tune opens the piece, strings hums cadences of which the ensemble builds onto a more cohesive piece, backed up by the rhythms of the percussions.

During the second half of one their shows, Io had a half-hour gap during their performance when someone in the audience seemed to have a heart attack. After that, the band returned and performed with more intensity.