This is a bit of an odd cove. Seemingly teetering between the worlds of prog rock, jazz fusion and jam bands, North Carolinas Marsupial can never be accused of easy listening.
They’ve been on the go since 2000 and have released three albums prior to this one - “Dancing About Architecture”, “Moby [Fleck]” and “Curtains”. They hit you hard right from the off, with the eight minute plus ‘Lead On’, um, leading you through an abundance of styles and moods.
However, there are some simpler songs on offer as well, and it’s tunes like ‘The Man Who Knows Things’ and ‘In Between’, which could suck in a wider audience, especially the latter with its countryish vibe.
It’s definitely the jamband fraternity who will respond most favourably to the range of music on offer, with fans of String Cheese Incident and Umphrey’s McGee unlikely to feel lost at a Marsupial show.
An album that rewards repeated plays, I did find myself skipping over ‘Sucker Punch’, but with only 10% of the record lost to me, that’s a mighty fine return.
