A Mozaic of sound

Mozaik kick started the festival well for us on the Friday night. Nothing like a bit of talent to impress you at the end of a working week. And heartening to see others just beginning their work as you unwind with a brew. Anyways they seemed to be unwinding themselves as the set went on, enjoying their work no doubt. Presenting some fine tunes and some agile blends, Irish and Appalachian, swinging mid song into Balkan/Macedonian, even seemingly Greek rhythms and modes, then back again, without any hint of garishness, Mozaik works. These are not laborious efforts but light and playful, felt numbers. In fact songs that vivify the life of the listener with fine playing and discursive influences sit well together in their sets. The story telling in the songs press home the playing handsomely. Durrell once said parts of Greece were ‘like Ireland towed down into the Mediterranean’. Their qualities of attitude being somewhat similar in many respects. It must be true of Bulgaria too. The easy dovetail of Balkan elements with Gaelic cadence and playing as done by Mozaik is testament to the strength of both traditions. Budapest, Rotterdam, Dublin or Dubbo; their sound is proof of the innovative and living traditions the band speaks from. The song “O’Donoghue’s” mentions bouzouki coming to Ireland. Australians have witnessed recent exchanges between our own music traditions and those studying early Gaelic music. The boys of Mozaik bring home the point of invigorating music with healthy hybridity by simply enjoying themselves up there on the stage. What a virile bunch they look, being so cross-fertile!