dreadpirateroberts ‘The Effects of Weather’ is another impressive blend of world music and jazz, pulling the listener in and out of countries from parts of Europe, Africa, South East Asia and Australia. While I prefer their previous album to this one, that’s more a reflection of personal enjoyment rather than quality. ‘Effects…’ is just as good, and develops the band’s already fascinating sound in a way that suggests Dung Nguyen has taken even more of a leadership role this time around.

Part of me thinks of their last album ‘Old Grooves for New Streets’ as being ‘led’ by Knight but here I feel like Nguyen’s range of stringed instruments star more so. Whether it’s his modified electric guitar or the traditional Vietnamese instruments (the dan bau and the dan tranh) his jangling and singing lines are once again weaving in and out of the rhythms but also acting more as focal points, often leading pieces, such as in one of the highlights, blues workout ‘Blues for a Jungster’ or taking great solos like in the African influenced piece ‘The Seddonista.’

That’s not to say the rest of the band have melted away, they’re still there and the fusion of musical styles is still key to their sound. The ‘Droop Street Breakdowns’ for instance are reminiscent of ‘Old Grooves…’ and demonstrate the seemingly effortless blending of styles that the band achieves. In fact, even if some of the melodies here aren’t as memorable for me this time around, it allows more of that melding already mentioned, and here, almost as much as the guitar, Pereira and Jayaweera’s percussion and drums respectively are just as important to pulling the varied styles together. New drummer Jayaweera’s slightly busier drumming on this album actually seems to force some songs into slightly more abstract territory (‘Music for Six Friends’ for example). Knight and Williamson’s trumpet and saxophones are arranged a little more sparingly, but they still solo and still work the melodies, though there’s probably a shade less aggression to their roles. And I do mean a shade, it’s probably not that much – you can take Williams in ‘The Seddonista’ or Knight during ‘Music For April’ for evidence of energy.

In some ways quite a different album to their last release, but what is familiar is just as welcome – ‘The Effects of Weather’ is more great World Fusion from ‘Way Out West.’

dreadpirateroberts 'Way Out West' is an Australian band that slides quite nicely into World Fusion, bringing elements from Western jazz together with Vietnamese stringed instruments and African percussion.

It's a fascinating mix and 'Old Grooves for New Streets' shows just how effective a fusion of styles and sounds can be in any form of music. Led by trumpeter and composer Peter Knight (whose sound, when muted, can be likened to Davis) and the rest of the band have created a blend of music that is evocative of the modern multi-cultural city, and in this case, their native Melbourne.

Dung Nguyen is a huge part of the band's sound. His modified electric guitar, dan bau (a monochord) and dan tranh (a plucked zither) all help provide part of the otherworldly sound to the pieces. And when backed with African percussion and trumpet and saxophone, the result is a sinuous, octave-sliding sound that sneaks through the ensemble playing and holds the listeners attention whenever used as a lead instrument, especially on the more atmospheric pieces like the opener.

And 'Old Grooves...' is heavy on atmosphere. While there are many bursts of energy from Beck's drum kit and from trumpet or sax (particularly during the 'Old Grooves' trilogy or 'Cafe Afrique') the album creates a unified mesh of mystique and confidence - obvious examples being the funky opening to 'Old Grooves For New Streets 2' or the 'eastern bazaar' feel to '...and the half light' the album's most compelling track.

Songwriting credits, while mostly Knight's, are also given to the band as a group on three of the eight songs. Despite this perceived imbalance, the set doesn't sound like a Peter Knight solo album with anonymous sidemen. Longer solos are present, but they are shared between stringed and horn instruments. In fact, a significant portion of his playing is supportive, contributing to a mood or a theme. The only piece he really takes center stage on for pretty much the whole of its duration, is the meditative closer, 'Boy in the City' where he's backed by Nguyen and the echo of tram bells.

Each player shines here. It shows the fruits of a convincing group that have played together for nearly ten years, who tour internationally and who are clearly dedicated to creating music that is an interesting and satisfying blend of styles and cultures. Four stars.