Troyka are an experimental British trio who make instrumental music. Featuring Kit Downes (once Mercury nominated in his own right) on hammond/synths, Chris Montague on guitar/loops and Josh Blackmore on drums, Troyka is far more than the sum of its parts and is definitely not your usual Hammond organ trio. Ornithophobia is the London three-piece’s third studio album and marks the fruition of five years' worth of musical experimentation...

Whenever I see the term "experimental" on a press release, my instant thought is "self-indulgent nonsense". And, while there is indeed an element of this alive and present in Ornithophobia, there are moments that make it all worthwhile ('Seahouses', for example).

Someone I know in the music industry once described jazz as a bunch of musicians gathered together, each playing their own instrument and performing their own song that's floating around in their head, with little regard for the other musicians. There's also a bit of that going on here. On occasion the music sounds messy and off-kilter with everything else that's going on... but, for the artists, that's the beauty of "experimental" music; you can produce anything and label it art. Whether you should then unleash it into the world is another matter.

This is very much a subjective experience. While I doubt I'll listen to this album again for entertainment, those that enjoy this sort of thing will obviously find much to enjoy here.

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Nick Smithson