Bloodwood: The Art of the Didjeridu

A splendid cross-pollinated didgeridoo recordings that gives master didg player Alan Dargin a chance to demonstrate the sort of mind-boggling sounds he can produce from his instruments -- "Hitchhiker's Nightmare," recorded on the streets of Sydney, Australia, has Dargin painting a wild highway soundscape that leaves his audience roaring with appreciative laughter. "Fantastic Plastic," on the other hand, is a demonstration that a master didg player can make any handy tube into an instrument -- Dargin used a handy two-meter PVC pipe for this cut. Given his ability to produce overtones (a skill few didgeridoo players have), the final result is quite startling. Michael Atherton, for his part, adds some excellent elements to Bloodwood: The Art of the Didjeridu, though the drum machine on "Storm Warning" is a bit of a distraction and the pseudo-rap of "Bloodwood Log" is positively annoying. When it works, though, it works beautifully.