This band is our local prog pride in the Greater Toronto Area. It is our best kept prog secret. It’s been so well kept that, I decided to break the silence about them; especially that, they couldn’t get past Tony Levin’s agent with a demo. They’ve been around for ten years. I’m writing this after attending their tenth anniversary show. For me, it was like partying for my very own birthday. You’ve got to see them live if you get a chance: great music, screen projections, lights (even on their fingers in the opening), masks, and a dynamic stage presence, especially from Kyree Vibrant (lead vocals), who works out through the entire show, confidently singing in several genres: cabaret, jazz, klezmer, reggae, prog.
Kyree came on board about four years ago, to sing in English, when the band switched from lyrics in Russian. She’s the only Canadian-born of the group. Constantin Necrasov (guitar, vocals) and Dmitri Lesov (bass, vocals) are from the former Soviet Union, whereas Igor Kurtzman (keyboards, vocals) and Ann Brody were born in Israel. Until you get a chance to see them live, let’s explore their 13 tracks/63-minute debut album.
One thing you have to know about it is that, they don’t need lengthy songs to make their musical statements. As sometimes happens, the band name came from conversations within the group at wee morning hours: “What time is it?” “It’s Half Past Four”. A moment of silence followed, then “That’s it, you got it”. They add: “it can be also ten minutes after a certain hour”. Which is adequate since their music can drive you crazy.
Igor Kurtzman often does Morazian solos using synth tones a la Kerry Minnear and Joe Zawinul (“Johnny”, “Poisoned Tune”, “Southern Boogie”, “Lullaby”). Constantin Necrasov blends in Eastern European themes (“Missing Sevenths”, “Salome”, “Rabbit”).
His guitar fluidly trades solos with Igor Kurtzman’s keys (“Lullaby”) and superbly intertwines with Kyree Vibrant’s vocals (“Bamboo”). Her lyrics are amazing especially in the “Underwater” bossa, a cosmic projection of the human condition. My favorite one is in “Southern Boogie”: “the train of thought is hard to keep, the fare you bargained turned out counterfeit”. In “Strangest Dream”, some of them read almost as if written by myself: “I’m feeling guilty when I’m having fun and I can’t rely on anyone”, or “I think about [someone] out there for me but [her] name is opportunity and [she] never seems to notice me’ and “I know patience is a virtue but I feel like my whole life I’ve been waiting”. Story-wise, the most ambitious track is “Biel”. A new God spreads his word through a woman. The world abandons all religions that were used with various excuses.
Track after track, you’ll be opening doors to look for a Rabbit in the Vestibule. Tamila Rostmoff-Lesov cleverly captures this in her graphic artwork of the CD. The “Rabbit” in question, however, doesn’t seem to be the beloved WillyFred of the Robert Fripp diary fame, or the character of a popular Russian TV cartoon of the ‘70s-‘80s, You Just Wait (Nu Pagady). It remains for you, the album listener, to decide who the”Rabbit” actually is.
Half Past Four 2010