Album Review: Dark Chocolate “Caper”

The jazz ensemble Dark Chocolate credits themselves with being an assemblage of "some of the finest musicians from different backgrounds" all converging on Big Sur. I was recently fortunate enough to receive their album "Caper" for review.

Their first song "I Give My Soul" coupled a stagnant guitar line with kinetic piano outbursts and waxing and waning lyrics which had the clever mechanism of lulling the listener into submission.

The second song "Gitane" used an accordion and a harp and sounded more like an interlude than an actual song. An artist got credit for vocals but offered little more than an "ooohhhhh" which sounded as though it were being delivered from across a large room.

It was then that the Dark Chocolate message began to take shape. The album's third song, "Quest" offered a jazzy piano, shuffling percussive rhythm, and electronic and string keyboard effects which evoked a decidedly jazzy fusion.

Other songs on the album conjured a wide swath of sounds; some songs standing alone to offer the sounds of Steely Dan, David Byrne, Kate Bush, and Afro Celt Sound System as "Come Join" did. Other songs felt more like classical music pieces as "Fundament" sets a careful stage in doing.

Dark Chocolate fancy themselves as "sophisticated but not overly refined…(just) like Dark Chocolate." While the enjoyment really depends on the mood you happen to be in, Dark Chocolate have proven with their album "Caper" that they have a sound to fit most temperaments.

Source:

http://www.megawavemusic.com/Dark_Chocolate.htm