David Taddie’s new album, Fancy Colors, blurs the spectrum between acoustic and electronic music into an unorthodox wave of sound. In contrast to the primary characteristics of each type of music, Taddie creates sophisticated, complex compositions by blending the sounds of string and woodwind instruments with the influence of computer-generated effects...

Those that enjoy experimental compositions, where the artists plays with not only conventional music structures, but also with the limits of the instruments, Fancy Colors holds a lot to get excited about. While I'm not generally a fan of this sort of "music", I certainly appreciate its merits and the effort that David Taddie has gone to to create something never heard before.

Written and recorded over two decades, the album explores timbre and space using the electronic medium. The eight tracks on the album expand the boundaries of the otherwise conventional sounds of instruments like the flute and piano to a grandiose level. The album’s debut track 'Wayward Country' fuses together alto and bass saxophone samples as well as interactive electronics to process the sound in real-time to create a spontaneous, improvised sense of time and space.

Even if you're not a fan, you'll have to admit that Fancy Colors perfectly explores just how far the sound of an instrument can really go when manipulated by electronics. The album offers an expansive palette for listeners who enjoy a little more depth to their art.

As I said before, I wasn't a fan and probably wouldn't listen to it again. For me it was a curiosity, a strange experience that has increased my appreciation of beautiful, conventionally constructed compositions.

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Darren Rea