FLAT EARTH SOCIETY
Genres: Progressive Big Band, Eclectic Fusion, Pop, Art Song, Folk, Jazz Related Soundtracks • Belgium

Belgian composer Peter Vermeersch, formerly of X-Legged Sally, knows how to make a big noise whatever the size of band. Now, with the 14-plus members of Flat Earth Society, he can make an even bigger racket. "Big band" can mean anything from the National Youth Jazz Orchestra to Lambchop, but this one makes a sound that's somewhere between the electric jazz of Acoustic Ladyland and an abrasive Dutch new-music ensemble such as Orkest de Volharding. Saxes honk, bass guitars rattle, brass broods: only Steve Martland or Mike Westbrook do anything like this in the UK. Vermeersch's tunes are angular and engaging, with a strong dose of the blues on dramatic epics like Hilton's Heaven and Edward, Why Don't You Play Some Blues, a touch of flamenco on Lax and some spirited improvisation on the sole non-original, Uri Caine's Snaggletooth. (John L Walters, The Guardian)