The Mystikos Quintet is the brainchild of local Indianapolis artist G. Rode, and let us hope that Mr. Rode continues favoring us with musical offerings like this - for this CD is nothing less than brilliant. It is one of the most finely crafted local CDs I have heard. Rode's background includes time spent honing his skills in folk and roots-rock scenes in other locales, but he has certainly come into his own with this endeavor, a combination of live and programmed instruments that fits squarely in the downtempo, funk, and jazzy sides of instrumental electronica. Ably assisted by four other musicians who provide live and sampled doses of bass, guitar, saxophone, flute, and trumpets, with Rode providing keyboards and programmed beats, the Mystikos Quintet sounds fully formed on this debut CD. And unlike so many "groups" of this type, the music sounds anything but canned or cobbled together. Rather, the music feels completely live and natural. Starting with a simple cowbell and conga pattern, soon joined by a samba-like bass line and drum beat, the opening track "Easy Listening" sets the template for what is to follow. With a funky, Jimmy-Smith like organ pattern, catchy trumpet line, keyboards sounding like a vibraphone, and capped with beautiful sax and piano fills, this song is stuffed to the brim with great melodies and hooks all set to a swinging, laid-back groove. Indeed, while most artists are satisfied with one good hook per song (if they can muster even that), the Mystikos Quintet stuffs numerous hooks into every tune, with each instrument usually entering the music with its own memorable hook-line. This is a tall task for even one song, but Rode proceeds to pull it off on nearly every track. Tempos are laid-back but deep enough to allow anyone to groove to the music, with the added kicker being the jazzy nature of much of the soloing, with particular kudos going to Slick Harper on trumpet and Danny Mumford on saxophone and unbelievable soulful flute. The strongest comparison would definitely be to prime-era Jimmy Smith, but there is plenty here for fans of Portishead, Jazzanova, Nightmares On Wax, or even Sade (instrumental, mind you) to get their heads around. Indeed, lovers of the "groovy" side of all things musical will be in heaven with this disc. I say "more please," and we Hoosiers should be supremely proud to count G. Rode and his Quintet as one of our own, although I predict it will only be a matter of time before these sounds extend their reach far beyond this state. My only question now is, "Where's the live show?" Watch this space for more information on this front, but for now, just pick up this CD, lay back, and enjoy.

Talkdemonic is composed of two members whose primary instruments are drums and viola, which gives you a good flavor for the instrumental stylings on offer here.

While most techno artists replace the drummer first and then add live instrumentation over programmed beats (see above), Talkdemonic does the opposite, using live drums to underpin the programmed offerings of guitars, synths, and live and sampled strings and keyboards. To these (drumming) ears, this keeps the music fresh and propulsive no matter how laid-back the music. "Folktronica" is the (not inappropriate) moniker currently being slapped on music of this type, but whatever the label, Beat Romantic captures the essence of its title beautifully.