As a venue, the Royal Albert Hall in London is the stuff of legend. It is so elegant it inspires greatness in performers no matter the discipline, as well as rapt and supportive attentiveness in audiences. Some of its past performers have included
Frank Sinatra, a double bill by
the Beatles and
the Rolling Stones,
Led Zeppelin,
Pink Floyd, and
Bob Dylan, to name a few. It therefore goes without saying that the weight on
Cinematic Orchestra mastermind
Jason Swinscoe to pull off something grand for a recording and video document of this
CO performance was considerable. In order to accomplish this feat, he swelled the ranks of his group to over 40 members, including the entire 24-piece
Heritage Orchestra! Vocalists
Heidi Vogel,
Lou Rhodes, and
Grey Reverend are all present to reprise their roles from various selections on studio recordings. Original
Cinematic Orchestra turntablist
PC returned to the fold for the evening as well. The sound is as lush, lively, and beautiful as one could possibly imagine.
Vogel's performance on the set opener, "All That You Give" (it originally appeared on 2002's
Every Day), is just gorgeous. After
Swinscoe announces her with a beautiful string intro, her soulful croon comes on full: sultry, emotional, and smooth. The dynamics and textures
Swinscoe assembles with the strings and horn sections are as lush as a
Gil Evans arrangement but as tight as
Manny Albam's. There are truly expansive and adventurous moments here, as on "Flite," introduced by a Rhodes piano with the rhythmic pulse set in play by rolling drum breaks and a skeletal but beautifully articulate upright bassline. Solo space is accorded sparingly while incorporating the entire orchestra -- the brass section (killer trombones), which becomes a bedrock for reining everyone in, is itself sassy and swaggering, holding the fort against edgy funky guitars and those dreamy piano chords.