Chris Jackson is the guitarist for Antarctic, a Jacksonville-based instrumental rock group that recently released a self-titled album on Hello Sir Records. The band will play Friday, July 9, at the Lomax Lodge in Five Points with Victor! Fix the Sun and The Reptilian.
1. "Canto de Xango" by Baden Powell: It has one of the most joyous melodies I've ever heard! Brazilian percussion instruments rumble underneath finger-picked notes of the guitar while female voices harmonize with a flute in the foreground. You can almost hear the big smiles on their faces.
2. "My Name is Daniel Pearl" by Steve Reich: Repetition is good for the mind! String melodies soar over a patchwork of pulsing chords from four vibraphones and two pianos. It's a song for the patient mind.
3. "Limehouse Blues" by Quintette du Hot Club de France: This tune always makes me want to skip. I have discovered very few musical relationships like that of Stephane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt.
4. "India" by Shakti: This song is easy to get lost in. I'm always expecting the neck of Mclaughlin's guitar to snap and Zakir Hussain's fingers to pierce through his tabla heads when I hear them play.
5. "Man With the Movie Camera" by The Cinematic Orchestra: The drummer's disjointed rhythms, the improvised cry of the clarinet, and the smooth texture of the horns at the end make for a very moving tune.