Redessence

This 2 CD collection from Bell’s Beach based surfer musician Red Whyte is exactly what the title implies – it is the essence of the man himself; his music; his way of life and above all his understanding that the two are in fact one. REDESSENCE is certainly proof of this.

An accomplished musician and composer – Derek Hynd once described him as “arguably more multi-talented than anyone in the Australian Movement” – Whyte has mastered the harmonic flute, sitar, acoustic and electric guitar, fretless and fretted bass, percussion and drums. The majority of what you hear on REDESSENCE is Whyte. It is his music and his playing!

The 39 tunes that form this collection of instrumental themes capture every conceivable mood of the ocean and is truly surf music in its purest form. This is no pop recreation of the surfing experience. This is the surfing experience transposed into music.

It is all here and it should be, culled from a succession of Whyte’s releases beginning in 1994 with BLUE RINGED OCTOPUS right up to his more recent offering, GOOSEBUMPS IN THE MIDDAY SUN.

One tune that should capture the notice of any longtime surfer is Long Live Taman Shud on Disc 2 of the set.  No doubt an accolade to the legendary Northern Beaches (Sydney) progressive combo led by Lindsay Bjerre, this three minute plus musical pastiche is hardly progressive music, but it will be a joyous addition to your listening pleasure!  Oh … and by the way … it is Tamam Shud, not the often incorrectly spelled Taman Shud. It is Persian for “The End.”

On REDESSENCE, Whyte has captured it all, and so he should. He has been at it for some time in various incarnations, from solo exploits and musical odysseys with groups such as The Inked Factor and Surfusion, to The Red Whyte Trio, etc.

Whatever your understanding of surf music is, it may well be jolted into reality by this set of exquisite tunes; from laid back rootsy, chill-out, acoustic gems, to samba and Spanish Flamenco flavoured tidbits, to sitar tinged grooves.  Besides surfing and the ocean, Whyte has been influenced by his overseas travel experiences and his studies with the sitar in India during the mid to late ‘90s. This is all reflected in REDESSENCE. The sitar, in particular, continues to play a key part in his solo recording ventures and on other artists’ albums as a session musician.

To say Whyte is versatile is an understatement. In fact, anything about Whyte is an understatement.