Touch Of Magic

Synopsis

Touch of Magic was one the third in the stream of solo albums released in Iceland (of all places) by former String Driven Thing and Van Der Graaf Generator violinist Grahame Smith, following his late-'70s departure from the latter. Following on from the similarly-themed Arrival of Spring and Kalinka, Touch of Magic is an all-instrumental set, and a truly fascinating hybrid of fiddle-led jazz-rock, an utterly invigorating creation that occasionally conjures images of String Driven Thing (or, perhaps, Curved Air). It is far more likely, however, to simply pursue its own idiosyncratic path through some breathtakingly subtle melodies, with a few of them (the reggae-inflected "Hvers Vegna Varstu Ekki Kyrrr," for example) sounding so naggingly familiar that you find yourself desperately sorry that you never learned Icelandic, back when you had the chance. ~ Dave Thompson