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Release Date 07/23/2007

(Inner Current)

The reach of the free is not so long. Athletic and formless, today's ashen world of "indie"-everything has given rise to absolutes and embarrassing distractions that border on the mundane. Unorthodox one second and trivial the next, the mawkish Underground tightens its grip, bombarding the senses, collapsing on itself. What was once free becomes insular. At the expressive opposite, fully idealized, is Domestic Blend, Vol. 1, a simmering fusion of sounds from Inner Current Recordings' roster. Enriching every corner with a potent thickness, Domestic Blend doesn't feel the need to be confrontational or audacious. It dances with brilliance, displaying a sound confidence as its center. Sweeping interludes from GLEN PORTER and MILFORD REYNOLDS collide with the natural. UNKNOWN SOURCE and AKELLO UCHENNA rest in a smoky space, with TAKE and ILL PADRE bursting in air. The magnet is TSUNCHOO's transparent mix, leading to an unobstructed stateliness that digs deeper with each track. The result is an almost unfamiliar yet resolute richness. Bold but never trusting, Inner Current reminds us that style need not be fashion, and tradition doesn't necessarily contradict freedom.