As any musician will tell you, it is never easy to bounce back when your backing band drops you. Especially if that same band largely helped build a solid reputation on European stages. The recipe is nevertheless simple, if Sebastian Sturm and his latest effort on SoulBeats, "Get up and Get Going", are anything to go by. Out go the Jin-Jin Band and 7 years of good and loyal service, in comes Exile Airline. A band every bit as Teutonic as the last, but with a little extra that leaps out at the ears from the start. The slightly academic style of the Jin-Jin is replaced by Exile Airline's freer, more adventurous one, and nobody will complain about that.
As a result, the influences meet, intermingle and merge into a harmonious whole that strives to showcase Sebastian Sturm's voice. Perfect for recovering from an artistic disappointment. But don't expect a long moaning lament or a huge turncoat move. Rather a gentle therapy in 12 sessions, which is to date his most intimate opus.
We navigate here and there, from acoustic ballads (Get Going, Faith) to conscientious skanks (Children, don't go blind), between melancholy (Never been as sad) and optimism (Don't look Back), with a band that shows broad tendencies towards heavenly flights as well as untimely dub reverb. And we won't complain about that either. And if he can also afford the luxury of a little featuring with his idol Kiddus I, we can tell ourselves that the recovery is already complete. All that remains is to go and see them on stage to bear witness. Take note, enthusiasts.
