Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #165

05-28-15   Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #165 features the core Gaea Star Band trio along with the always-appreciated vocal and percussion stylings of Sondra Lewis.  We begin with the sweet improvised air “Onawanaweyanamahey” with Mariam Massaro on vocals and marimba, Craig Harris on congas, Bob Sherwood on piano and Sondra on vox and guiro.   Mariam picks up the native flute for the beautiful, subdued “Above The Clouds”.  After the break we ease into Mariam’s “Celebrate The Day” with a driving improvised groove featuring a driving rhythm driven by shaker and handclaps.  A circular, Beatle-esque series of chords from Bob punctuated by explosive blues licks reorients the piece into an anthemic tribal rock jam, then a ska groove, then an airy ballad, coming to rest in a lustrous series of countermelodies from Mariam and Sondra atop exploratory, tranced-out piano and relentless conga rhythm.   “Shining Star” is a hypnotic, disquieting musical poem to the night sky.