This isn’t like some of the more recent
Maharadja Sweets releases you may have kicking around on of your tape decks,
like “Guitar Joy” or “Slithering Kingdoms,” both on Oxtail Recordings, although
it’s much closer to “Guitar Joy” in general. (“Slithering Kingdoms” was way
crazier.) That shouldn’t be surprising, but you wouldn’t know that yet, and
that’s only because I haven’t told you. See, these tunes have been kicking
around inside the Maharadja’s head and heart for a long time, since the 1990s
in fact. I know, I know, we were both still in high school and college around
then, chill out. He took his time recording them, then he sat on them.
Till now.
The story goes, Keith and Seth “discovered” the
Maharadja in 2011, and the rest is history, because the Orange Milk boys had
the good sense to put out some of his music over the years. What they may not
have expected was the treasure trove of delightfully introspective material
crammed unceremoniously under his bed for so long – they were all about the
digital processing–meets–instrumental prowess–meets–experimental flourishes of
the Maharadja they unearthed that one time in 2011. And the perhaps surprising
revelation that the “Something’s Been Lost” recordings existed was surely a
welcome surprise for ol’ Keith and Seth.
So here it is.
The Maharadja’s finally letting these tunes fly
free, like an airborne ibis leading the way to the afterlife, or something like
that. (See cover image for citation.) His voice, fragile yet strong, anchors
the piano- and guitar-based songs, which not only endure but also flourish so
many years after conception. He even takes on Bob Dylan and the Band’s “I Shall
Be Released,” a delicate and understated almost-lounge version (but way sad),
underscoring the metaphorical freedom longed for and only spiritually – or
again, metaphorically – earned. Fly, airborne ibis, fly – we’re with you,
letting go of everything that eludes our grasp in the transition. Any
transition.
--Ryan
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