The AGE (Australia), Nov 2012 — Lisa Young Quartet, The Eternal Pulse
“Her art is an awesome rhythmic control… Not to be missed, this is one out of the box…. ★★★★“
LEON GETTLER: As a vocalist, Lisa Young has carved a real niche. She is an exponent of konnakol, south-Indian vocal percussion, in which the voice imitates the driving percussion and patterns, with each drum stroke carrying a vocal sound. It’s Indian scat but it’s haunting, sounding so ethereal and other-worldly. She carried it off beautifully in her 2006 album Grace, which picked up a Bell award, and she does the same here with her old crew of bassist Ben Robertson, guitarist Stephen Magnusson and drummer Dave Beck. Although wordless, the vocals are totally engaging. Her art is an awesome rhythmic control. You hear it from the first song, The Eternal Pulse, in which she starts out working in with Beck, in effect two drummers side by side, as they move to a free-flowing chant. On the first bars of Tha Thin Tha, she is joined by Robertson pushing different rhythms against Beck’s powerful drive. The highlight is The Turning, with Robertson’s beautiful bowed bass lines. Not to be missed, this is one out of the box.
Source: The Age Online
