Mata Angin — Arus Balik

Arus Balik is forty-two minutes long and contains five tracks, which tells you most of what you need to know about the band's intentions.

The suite is built on a gending percussionist Wayan Sudarma learned as a child, restated in each movement at a different tempo. When it works — the transition into “Balik” is the finest two minutes of Indonesian jazz this year — it is genuinely thrilling.

When it does not, it is because the band has left itself nowhere to go. “Arus III” runs eight minutes on a single idea that was fully expressed in three.

The verdict

A demanding record with a masterpiece somewhere inside it. Mata Angin will find it on the next one.