"Rafael Toral's most recent album, 2024's Spectral Evolution, consisted of a single 42-minute track, divided into loose, flowing movements, but based on the chord changes of the Gershwin chestnut "I Got Rhythm." On his follow-up, Traveling Light (October 24), the Portuguese guitarist works smaller, refashioning six jazz standards using his "space instruments"- electronic contraptions of his own invention that modulate feedback, distort signals, and utilize other instruments like the theremin to create eerie tones, transforming them into something decidedly nontraditional."
"As on Spectral Evolution, Toral radically decreases tempos, letting chords elongate into languorous drones that sound more like electric organ than guitar. It's a simple yet effective trick that's been used by countless bands-if you slow things down enough, even the simplest melody and most basic rhythm turn strange, complex, and compelling. Yet Toral has got more on his mind than a good gimmick; the way he elaborates and expands upon the hypnotic structures of these decelerated oldies never fails to surprise or intrigue."
Rafael Toral reworks six jazz standards on Traveling Light using homemade "space instruments" that modulate feedback, distort signals, and employ devices like the theremin to produce eerie, nontraditional tones. He dramatically slows tempos, stretching chords into languorous drones that more closely resemble electric organ than guitar. The chosen repertoire connects to Billie Holiday, Miles Davis, and Duke Ellington, favoring pieces from the 1930s–40s with a Depression-era desolation characterized by sultry ache, bluesy insouciance, and a modernist lassitude. The treatments emphasize hypnotic structures and sustained transformation rather than conventional melodic or rhythmic presentation.
Read at SPIN
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