One Man Cordovan

From the combined forces of trip hop and jazz comes a new one-man act called Cordovan (AKA Greg Reeves). Reeves utilizes his experience and skill as a musician, having played in bands of several different styles, to create fresh new grooves for even the most novice of dance beat aficionados. Though the first track “Magma” starts out with a lush, pulsating, heavy elegance near to predecessor DJ Shadow, Reeves deftly switches gears to enthrall listeners with his own brand of electronic salad.Cordovan seems to have the signature sound of a new era in music, one where genre lines are not always clearly drawn. There are obvious elements of jazz and trip hop, but that is only the beginning. There is hip hop and R&B as in the beats of “Gamma”, rock in the meaty bass of “Skinny Girl”, clubby dance beats in “Lacuna III” and even classical in “Lacuna I”. This may appeal to a broader spectrum of listeners, making it apparent why he is frequently employed to create and remix soundtracks for TV and movies.

However, sometimes Reeves’ tangents lag a little too long. Just when the song is expected to progress, as in the end song “Sneaky’s Beat”, another two minutes of the same loop with little else other than some added sound effects in the background are tacked on. Then it ends abruptly. This is mostly excusable, as the self-titled album is Cordovan’s first solo release. He is used to working with other musicians, and perhaps with the next solo release Reeves will have his individual writing style a little more polished so that an even wider audience can enjoy it.