Orchestre National Urbain – United Forces DLP

A unique double album from a Lyon-based Orchestre National Urbain has recently arrived at our headquarters. It’s not like they were strangers to these pages. Quite the contrary, I had a chance to listen to a couple of their compositions and even included one of them on our playlists. For those unfamiliar with these folks, Orchestre National Urbain consists of seven musicians who shapeshift the boundaries of several conventional and avant-garde music genres. Of course, with sonic maneuvers like these, their music often bends several art forms in order to achieve the desired sound. These experimentations make their compositions more interesting, so Orchestre National Urbain has many things to offer, no matter if you’re into conventional or avant-garde music.

Maybe United Forces is a double vinyl album, but this fine piece of sonic artistry carries only ten numbers. Therefore, you may expect longevous compositions full of pleasant sonic maneuvers and rhythmical acrobatics. As soon as you put a needle on this double album, you’ll notice that the sound of Orchestre National Urbain defies all the categorizations into a singular music genre. You’ll hear how these folks continuously levitate between the late sixties to late seventies jazz, art-rock, progressive rock, punk rock, hip-hop, spoken word, and even some funk, soul, disco, reggaeton, world, or similar music genres. However, these additions are hearable as more than necessary enhancements, accentuations, decorations, and other polyphonic or rhythmic details that define some of the best records.

Still, whoever stumbles upon and listens to this double vinyl release will realize that Orchestre National Urbain explore all these music genres in such an avant-garde manner. There’s a presence of abstract flow, experimental vibes, and otherwordly atmosphere that lurks during almost every composition. At some points, you’ll hear the best soundtrack for the fifties, sixties, or seventies film noir and detective movies, while on the other side, you’ll hear some of the best progressive and jazz maneuvers. Orchestre National Urbain consists of experienced musicians capable of conveying a particular ambiance that continuously delivers mindblowing orchestrations, perfectly accentuated rhythmical sequences, or outstanding female and male vocal harmonies.

It’s also interesting how every composition is diverse compared to the remainder of the material. Nevertheless, each track fits together in this colossal sonic scheme without spoiling the audio aesthetics. Therefore, if you’re a profound admirer of brass, string, keyboard, and percussive instruments without delving too deep into unnecessary aggression and heaviness, United Forces DLP will be right up your alley. It will instantly appeal to all the fans of experimental and avant-garde who like a nice touch of conventional sound added to it. United Forces are available on double vinyl directly from the band or check out streaming services if you prefer digital music.