The opening scene from Cinematic Orchestra’s show at Club Soda was an epic performance. A soothing electronic ambiance was established by the time the bombastic rhythm section crashed into the mix. The groove was in perfect sync with the programmed sound-scapes and the crowd was immediately lulled into the cinematic vibe. Then, out of nowhere appeared a saxophone which introduced a simple and profound lead riff which took the expansive sound of the band into another galaxy. By this point, only a few minutes into the show, the audience was flying high and the enduring jam session that followed only served to increase the height of the spectacle. Another programmed horn riff melted into the live saxophone and after dazzling everyone with this stellar introduction, Cinematic Orchestra started to flex its jam-band muscles.

The jamming came in streams of jazz-tinged improvisations between the tightly interlocked bass and drums. The standout musician of the night was the drum player who displayed a virtuosic feel for syncopated hits and fills that somehow seemed to land back on the beat. While jumping off on his adventurous flares of rhythm, the drumming always seemed to put the orchestra as close to the edge as possible without ever actually falling out of time. Perhaps it was the bassist who kept the constant flow of the music on point without drifting too much in order to sustain the percussive onslaught. After a solid crescendo that seemed to climax at the precipice, the music returned to the main theme of the original scene only to take us to another dimension. A drone consisting of a single programmed saxophone note which extended for minutes took us beyond the musical horizon as the live saxophone player began to wail away on top. The fusion of the programmed sounds combined with the heavy rhythm section and the jazzy saxophone improvisations created a momentum that was never really matched during the rest of the evening. Unfortunately, the opening scene was also the climax of the cinematic experience. However, very few orchestras would have been able to follow this mesmerizing sequence.

The rest of the show featured gospel tinged vocals delivered smoothly by a female lead singer and a couple of tunes interpreted by a playful male lead singer. Also joining in on the action was the fantastic opening act who delivered an intimate (and occasionally hilarious) show featuring mostly stripped love songs performed in the sole company of his acoustic guitar and a few beers. His original guitar style was all that was needed to sustain his compositions and the crowd’s attention. Nevertheless, when he appeared with the Cinematic Orchestra, it seemed like yet another character had been cast into a supporting role.

Somewhere along the picture, the structure and effectiveness of the first song which featured the core of the orchestra, began to give way to the incoming vocalists and extras. This only served to clutter and sidetrack the Cinematic Orchestra’s monumental power which fully expressed itself during their instrumental pieces. In the end, some of us were left to wonder what would have been if the Cinematic Orchestra had left the songs and vocals to other bands and focused entirely on their jamming/electronic fusion. What we ultimately experienced was a potent but slightly out of focus montage of sights and sounds.

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