A Different Aspect #99

It’s nearly a decade ago since I first discovered Tokyo based quartet Lite, with the release of their fifth album, Cubic. For a few years after that discovery I followed their career closely, a period that brought a steady stream of material: a single, an EP, and what appeared to be a reissue of their debut, filmlets. In 2019 I was nudged into sharing a few thoughts on their sixth album, Multiple.

Since then the band have continued to release singles, EPs, and full length albums, and the arrival of The Beyond a couple of months ago felt like the perfect moment to return with another TPA review.

Happily, Lite’s line‑up remains unchanged in 2025, and the music on this latest release is just as intact. It’s still brisk, catchy, quirky, edgy, and intricately constructed. Their trademark momentum is once again propelled by rapid fire metric shifts and razor sharp polyrhythms, the kind that pull you headlong into their groove‑driven world.

Lite remain a fascinating band, and if they’ve somehow escaped your radar until now, The Beyond is as good a place as any to dive in.

Many moons ago, during one of my frequent YouTube rabbit‑hole sessions, this one featuring a procession of gifted guitar players, I stumbled across Brazilian guitarist and composer Lari Basilio. At the time she had just released her second full‑length studio album, Far More. Her technique immediately impressed, but what really made me stick around was the rhythm section, which was absolutely on the money. No surprise, then, to discover it was Vinnie Colaiuta and Nathan East holding down the groove. Add Greg Phillinganes on keys and a guest appearance from Joe Satriani, and Far More quickly became a real gem of a find.

Three years later Lari returned with the equally impressive Your Love. Vinnie Colaiuta remained behind the kit, while the bass duties were shared by Sean Hurley and none other than Leland Sklar.

Before moving on to Lari’s latest album, it’s worth a brief detour back to 2015 and The Sound of My Room – Live, a release I was particularly taken with, especially the acoustic tracks, which revealed a different, more intimate side of her playing…

All of which brings us to this newest instrumental offering from Lari Basilio, who, I have said very little about thus far, but her music speaks volumes. What hits home first is how consistently melodic and engaging the album is from start to finish. Yes, there are plenty of fiery fretboard workouts, but never at the expense of the piece. Equally striking is Lari’s command of the instrument: tasteful phrasing, impeccable precision, and a feel that elevates every line she plays. Her influences are broad which she weaves into her music that grooves and rocks in equal measure. If the opener, The Way Home, showcases the former, then the delicious Seasons delivers the latter..

A great album, and for me, one of the standout releases of 2025.

Although a new name to me, Irish harpist and singer Joy Shannon has built up a sizeable catalogue of albums, EPs, and singles dating back to 2008. Therefore some catching up was in order and her latest release, from October ’25, felt like the perfect place to begin. My curiosity was sparked by two things: the sparseness of the instrumentation listed, and the fact that the music draws inspiration from J.R.R. Tolkien’s poetry.

Arriving at TPA just before the festive season, the album promised, on paper, to be a refreshing antidote to the repetitive, often bland airplay of tired seasonal hits.

And it has to be said In the Forest Singing Sorrowless more than lived up to expectation. This beautifully crafted Celtic pagan folk music combines Joy’s pure vocal delivery with harp, enriched by a guest cast on voice, cello, and guitar. Her interpretation of ancient folklore, mirroring Tolkien’s own fascination with mythologies, unfolds through her signature dark folk style, full of longing and mystical atmosphere. The pairing of her music with Tolkien’s words feels seamless and inspired.

Joy Shannon has delivered a heartfelt, beautifully crafted album that feels both intimate and expansive. With its sincerity and enchanting atmosphere, In the Forest Singing Sorrowless is a delightful discovery.

As a side note, a companion instrumental version was released a month later, and is quite sublime.

The flow of music arriving at the TPA digital desk is as diverse as it is seemingly inexhaustible, which means it often falls to the introductory email or EPK to spark enough curiosity for a reviewer to dig further. It’s a lottery at the best of times. Steve Blanco’s album could easily have slipped past in that deluge, but his description: “… a stripped-down, instrumental reinterpretation of select Imperial Triumphant material, presented as an intimate, atmospheric piano work. It’s minimal, through-composed, and focused on mood, harmony, and narrative rather than genre”, was enough for me to dig deeper.

I’ll admit straight away that Imperial Triumphant were new to me. They turn out to be an American experimental, decidedly extreme metal band who, by 2025, had been forging their own path for two decades.

Returning to Imprints of Man, Steve Blanco presents material drawn from Imperial Triumphant’s catalogue, reshaped into solo piano pieces. The opener, Merkurius Gilded, immediately showcases his virtuosity, rooted in contemporary classical language, Béla Bartók sprang to mind almost instantly, yet there’s a clear thread of jazz sensibility woven through his phrasing and harmonic choices.

At this point, comparison feels inevitable. Imperial Triumphant’s original version, from their 2022 album Spirit of Ecstasy, begins, and persists, with mellotron strings, but musically it’s a full‑scale assault: metallic riffing, relentless drums, growly vocals, and an eccentric array of solo textures. There’s even a saxophone cameo, credited to Kenny G… or perhaps it’s drummer Kenny Grohowski? The ambiguity feels perfectly in character for the band.

Across Imprints of Man, Steve Blanco transforms the source material into imaginative, introspective piano works – a testament to his creative instincts and a journey that proves unexpectedly rewarding and absorbing.

Given my unfamiliarity with Imperial Triumphant, a little retrospective exploration was required, and it turns out this isn’t a first foray into re‑interpretation. Their 2023 Covers Collection EP sees them reshaping music by Radiohead, Rush, and others, suggesting that reinvention has long been part of their artistic DNA.