With B FLAT A this much acclaimed quartet from Gdansk, Poland have produced their most epic and visceral statement to date. A universe where echoes of Can, Syd Barrett and Fugazi lovingly collide.
Cryptic and possessing of a great moral force, Trupa Trupa is a band for these times, whether we are ready for them or not. One element of the Gdansk band's music is always there, in plain sight. Trupa Trupa look to confront evil; exploring, in Kwiatkowski's words, "the wasteland of human nature where hatred and genocide are not just distant reverberations of Central European history but still resonate in contemporary reality." The band often does this openly and without compromise; even if the lyrics love to deal in metaphor or intrigue. And yet, and maybe strangely in a world increasingly addicted to proclaiming "its own truth" online, Trupa Trupa still revels in making truthful music that needs no instant affirmation.
On this new release, for example, the crushing plod of 'Sick' is driven by the lines, "I don't know how to tell you that you're sick". Brilliantly evocative and double-dealing, it is a line that brings to mind both recent events and countryman Andrzej Zulawski's 1971 film, The Third Part of the Night, where the metaphor of sickness is graphically and symbolically used to describe a society dealing with the pressure of both a physical and mental occupation. Here, the processed noises sound like they mutate, or decay as they progress; a sonic petri dish that reminds us that sometimes we have no control over the way things pan out.
B FLAT A also foregrounds one of Trupa Trupa's great strengths - maybe an unfashionable one for these LCD times - namely, their collective ability to make incredibly tactile, physical music. The band approaches this task in a number of ways; sometimes like that of a master craftsman carving an ornate chair. Or a welder repairing a tank that's been knocked up in a sortie. Regardless of the situation, nothing is left to chance, there is never the idea that the song and the texts have to undergo an awkward introduction after both have been created. Because of this B FLAT Ais perhaps their most alert and "focused" record to date; it signals an intent and a placement of sound. Tracks like 'Far Away', 'Kwietnik' and 'Twitch' are driven by tough, strident beats and growling guitar passages, inhabiting an interesting hinterland; one in view of the camp fires set up by Goth and post rock.
