Antonis Antoniou: Throisma album review — Delphic imagery

The Cypriot musician Antonis Antoniou is impressively busy, both as a mainstay of the groups Monsieur Doumani and Trio Tekke, and as a solo artist. Throisma is his third release in the space of a year, after the nocturnal horrorshow of Monsieur Doumani’s Pissourin and the Nicosian social history of his solo Kkismettin. It has a much looser theme than either of its predecessors, in the form of an existential questioning of the imperatives of capitalism and consumerism.

The opening title track thrusts the listener into a sound world of sour Anatolian folk motifs on the tsouras (a tiny bouzouki), deep reverberant basslines and drum patterns that flicker in and out. “I am the rustling of the leaf,” Antoniou sings in the chorus — the force that brings dull souls back to life and sets them free in the wind.

“Skarta Dora” sets out the countervailing force, in the form of “useless gifts”. The bassline is wonky, barely in control. “Don’t accept them, don’t open them,” chants Antoniou. A synth line winds around, with percussion like clattering shiny trash. “What’s that whisper in your ear, like a lullaby for a baby?” An insistent rhythm of tom-toms. “A python will tighten its grip and strangle you.” More and more instruments crowd into the frame, including tsouras so distorted it sounds like white metal. The verses circle round and round on each other, imagery increasingly Delphic.

The traditional melody of “Engata”, bolstered by drums with the syncopated power of Gene Krupa, nods to the labyrinth of Knossos and to wildfires. Efthymia Alphas, who joined Antoniou on his previous album, is back to sing with him on “Yiorti”. Both voices are hidden far back in the mix, yearning to be heard over the starkly foregrounded tsouras and drums with the portentous rumble of a temple, eventually resolving into a slow, gasping dance. Words emerge as if from behind a veil. “Tomorrow’s feast,” they chant, “longs to arrive.”

A couple of instrumentals lighten the tension for a moment: the twangy stings of “Ksorkisma” punctuated by Theremin-styled wails invoking thunder; the slow Eastern Mediterranean bassline of “Zeybek Anark”. The album closes with “Achtina 2”, a throwback to the blissed-out original that ended Kkismettin. This time the song opens with a fluttering moth-like noise and monastic vocals from Antoniou. The bottom end of the sound bubbles like the Kraken; the words fly up. “Souls are blooming in the depths,” he promises. “They have found ways to hold on to each other/to kiss in secret with their eyes.”

★★★☆☆

‘Thróisma’ is released by Ajabu!