Farewell Ferengistan

"Ferengistan" is a term used in Central Asia to denote an imaginary place that represents the superficiality and materialism that too often characterize Western culture. So there's no real secret to the message behind the latest album by Toby Marks, aka Banco de Gaia. While the music is (thankfully) free of didactic lyrics, its instrumental tracks were written with serious matters of geopolitics in mind: one track has reference to a law recently passed in Mongolia, reinstating the use of surnames (a practice previously forbidden under Communist rule); the ironically titled "Harmonious G8" consists of eight overdubbed vocals, each an improvisation by a singer from one of the G8 nations; "White Man's Burden" requires little amplification. If you're not interested in the politics, you can just relax and enjoy the variously danceable and relaxing moods that Marks creates; the robust ethno-funk of "Kara Kum" is a highlight of the program, as is the very pretty and gently swinging "Flow My Dreams, the Android Wept" (based on a lute tune from Renaissance England titled "Flow My Tears," which was reportedly the favorite piece of music of science fiction author Philip K. Dick). The jittery Middle Eastern dub of "Chingiz" is also lots of fun. The only consistent irritant here is the exceptionally long track length, which wouldn't be a problem if every selection didn't seem to take forever to actually get underway. More and shorter tracks of the same quality would have made for a better album, but this one is still quite good. Recommended. ~ Rick Anderson