Opafire - Opafire (CD)

All Music Guide

Opafire play an exhilarating brand of thoroughly contemporary worldbeat music, full of infectious grooves and subtle but strong melodies. Organized around the talents of composer, synthesist and co-producer Norman Engelleitner, Opafire boasts a stellar line-up consisting of some of the Bay Area's finest musicians. Robert Powell contributes acoustic and electric guitar, Dallas Smith plays flute, sax, and clarinet, Michael Manring offers his fretless electric bass, Christopher Hedge (who also co-produced) provides additional synth and special effects, and Brian Mantia holds it all down with his crisp punchy drumming. Adding spice to the brew is Michael Pluznik who plays his dazzling array of percussion instruments and hand drums from around the world. The arrangements are as tight as they are dense, with the electronic and acoustic instruments blending together to create a multi-layered collage of sound, alive with its supple rhythms. The elements drawn from rock, jazz, electronic and Th...ird World sources fuse together to make Opafire's debut release a rich and exciting listening experience. - Backroads Music/Heartbeats, All Music Guide Read more Less