Review: Marbin – Dirty Horse

Style: Progressive Jazz Fusion (instrumental)
Recommended for fans of: Mahavishnu Orchestra, Thank You Scientist, Weather Report
Review by: Nick
Country: USA
Release dates: 27 September 2022 (Spotify), 1 June 2022 (Bandcamp)

Ever since Thank You Scientist went more metal on their last release, I’ve been yearning for some more traditional jazz fusion in the prog sphere. We Used to Cut the Grass scratched that itch a little bit, but nobody seemed to come close to the absolute masterful songcrafting that appeared in songs like “Rube Goldberg Variations”. As such you can imagine my surprise when I turned on this new release by Marbin, a band I had never previously heard of. Dirty Horse scratches that progressive jazz fusion itch and then some.

The album comes out swinging with “The Freeman Massacre”, a funky jam that bobs into high energy passages and weaves out to more restrained quiet jamming. One thing you’ll immediately notice about this album from this song alone is how absolutely insane Everette Benton Jr. is on the drums. This dude is a BEAST, jumping between complex almost solo-like fills and calmer, straight forward sections. The dynamics he portrays are good examples of the dynamics displayed by the entire band.

I don’t think there’s any other pairing of songs that so well displays this dynamic variation as “Sid Yiddish Pt 1” and “Sid Yiddish Pt 2”. The former is essentially an 8 minute long sax solo that is swiftly followed by the latter which is a more intense play on a lot of melodies from said former. The ability to have these two seemingly diametrically opposed parts combine so well into each other to not feel jarring and out of place cannot be understated. Really masterful songwriting on all members’ parts.

I’m really straining to find any downsides to this album. Every single song is progressive jazz perfection with a number of styles taken from all corners of the musical world. From the funky jam band feeling of “Midnight Squirrel” to almost metal leanings in “Headless Chicken” to the baroque waltz of “Dirty Horse Pt 1”, this band keeps the styles dipping and diving so constantly that it’s almost impossible to get bored. The production is also stellar with every single instrument being not only easy to make out, but natural to do so as well. I rarely call out those who work on the production side of the musical world, but Brian Schwab and Nate Wood deserve special shout outs for their mixing and mastering respectively. All of the members honestly deserve shout outs. The playing is so tight and the songwriting is so fluid that the album’s length of roughly 74 minutes flies by like absolutely nothing.

All in all, this album is great for a multitude of occasions. Want some background jazz to do the dishes to? This’ll work. Want something to take you on a musical journey? This’ll work too. How about an album for a nice drive? You get my point. Nothing about this album is too avant-garde to be overwhelming, but it isn’t so simple as to be boring and, because of this, Dirty Horse lends itself to working in a multitude of environments that other jazz fusion albums may not shine as well. It really is a one size fits all.

So, are you a fan of jazz fusion legends like Mahivishnu Orchestra? How about newer bands like the aforementioned Thank You Scientist? If you fuck with them, you’ll fuck with Marbin. You’ll fuck with Marbin hardcore. This is for any and all progressive jazz fans out there. Check. This. Album. Out. I know I’ll personally be listening to this one for years to come.

Recommended tracks: Dirty Horse Pt II, Headless Chicken
You may also like: The Comet is Coming, Odd Circus
Final verdict: 9.5/10

Related links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Official Website | YouTube | Facebook

Marbin is:
– Dani Rabin (guitar)
– Danny Markovitch (sax)
– Jon Nadel (bass)
– Everette Benton Jr. (drums)