Track By Track : Barend Tromp – Odd Time Concepts
By John A. Wilcox



::: contented sigh ::: This is exactly what I love finding! Exciting new music. Barend Tromp is a wildly inventive composer bringing us great prog with boggling time signatures and (drum roll) Odd Time Concepts! Read on as he sheds light on what's at play here track-by-track...

Track 1: Sitharsis
BT: The concept of this album was to explore a unique time signature for each song—not to be overly complex, but simply because I like these so-called "odd" time signatures. I guess that's the consequence of growing up with classic prog bands like Rush, Yes, early Genesis, and King Crimson. Listening to 20th-century classical composers such as Stravinsky and Steve Reich surely helped as well. I still try to make the music accessible, maintain the groove, and stay in one time signature for longer, rather than changing time signatures constantly.

This opening track begins with a short improvisation on fretless bass, setting the mood for this Eastern-vibed song. The track kicks in with a fast slap bass pattern, followed by some intense drumming from my friend and former Lemur Voice bandmate Nathan van de Wouw. The time signature here is 3/4 with triplets, but I see it as 9/8. It changes to 5/4 for the guitar solo sections. I also play sitar on this track—blending traditional Indian music with Western music is something I really enjoy.

Track 2: Gamelan Sepuluh
BT: Besides Indian music, I’m also intrigued by other forms of world music, such as Indonesian gamelan. The intricate, complex rhythms and mystical tunings of a gamelan ensemble have always inspired me. Sepuluh means "ten" in Indonesian; the main fretless bass groove is in 10/4, hence the title. This groove is interwoven with spacious fusion guitar chords and synth guitar lead lines. There's a long percussion section in the middle of the song in which drummer/percussionist Ron van Stratum plays all kinds of small percussion instruments. This section builds up and leads back to the main 10/4 groove.

Track 3: Life Path 21
BT: In numerology, a Life Path 21 is often associated with spontaneity, creativity, and a positive outlook. The “21” in the title also refers to the 21/8 time signature of this song. The main guitar and synth bass sequence consists of 21 notes. With this, I play all kinds of rhythmic "games." I divide the 21 into 3×7, which makes it a 7/4 time signature with triplets—also divided as a larger whole in 8+6. But 21 can also be divided into 16+5, which happens in the pseudo-reggae part, where the kick changes from 3 to 4 while the guitar/bass sequence stays the same. This is a rhythmic technique called metric modulation: changing the pulse while keeping the underlying notes the same. There’s a lot more to say about this, but it’s (hopefully) not as complex as it might sound.

Track 4: Heavy Slap
BT: This is the only track on the album that is completely in 4/4. It features some cool percussive drumming by my friend Eugene Vugts. It’s the most aggressive track of the album, with lots of distorted slapping on my six-string fretless bass. I was going for a Les Claypool-type vibe with these slap parts—without trying to copy him. There are even surf music influences in some of the guitar lines.

Track 5: Madhuvanti (feat. Trey Gunn)
BT: This track starts with an atypical slap bass melody. I also like standard funk slapping but I am more interested in using slap bass in a more original, non-standard way or context. This led to the writing of two advanced slap bass books called Next Level Slap Bass (Vol 1 &2) that where published in 2024. I’m very pleased with the amazing and unique Warr guitar solo by former King Crimson member and my personal hero Trey Gunn.

Tonally, the song is based on the raga Madhuvanti. A raga is a melodic framework—similar to a mode or scale—used in Indian classical music. It’s a structured combination of musical notes and rules about how those notes should be used, providing a foundation for improvisation and composition. Each raga has a unique sound and is often associated with specific emotions, times of day, deities, or seasons. There are over 100 ragas.

Track 6: Baritone War
BT: This is a heavier prog/fusion track, starting with a riff on a guitar tuned to baritone (a fourth lower than standard tuning). Most of the song is in 7/8, but there are two sections in 4/4. The track is dominated by heavy bass synths and Mellotron sounds. A mystical synth section in the middle leads to a short bass solo and a cool solo break by drummer Nathan van de Wouw, building up to a reprise of the A section—this time with a guitar solo.

Track 7: Chromatron (Parts 1–3)
BT: Originally, this was one long track combined with track 11, but I decided to split it into two shorter tracks because it suits the album's continuity better. It’s a more experimental piece, filled with chromaticism (tones in half steps), influenced by 20th-century classical 12-tone music. It also includes elements of electronic music. Part 1 begins with a strange guitar pattern, which is then repeated on synth. On top of this, I play a fretless six-string bass solo. Part 2 is more electronic, with a menacing synth bass arpeggio and mysterious guitar parts, leading into Part 3, which begins with a fast, Fripp-like guitar figure.

Track 8: Thirteen (feat. Pat Mastelotto)
BT: As the title suggests, this track is in 13—specifically 13/16. King Crimson and Stick Men drummer Pat Mastelotto did a great job on the drums. His experimental and free-flowing playing really contributes to the open feel of the track—not an easy task for a 13/16 track! The unison guitar/Mellotron/harmonium theme and many other parts are based on the octatonic scale (a symmetrical scale consisting of eight notes). At the 1:24 mark, a long guitar solo begins—somewhat influenced by Allan Holdsworth. After two short fretless bass solos, the track returns to the unison theme, then ends in a more abstract section featuring electric upright bass.

Track 9: Access To The Sixth Dimension
BT: The sixth spiritual dimension is a realm of divine blueprint and higher learning, where we begin to access the archetypal templates that shape the universe. It is a dimension of profound wisdom and clarity, where the essence of creation can be experienced in its purest form.

This song is based on a driving slap bass line in 6/8, over which atmospheric guitar chords and lead lines evolve. A faster section follows, inspired by electronic dance music. These electronic influences are also heard in the middle section, where bizarre synth sounds take center stage.

Track 10: Pandrah Ka Yantra
BT: A yantra is a geometrical diagram primarily associated with Tantric traditions in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. It’s used as a tool in rituals, meditation, and spiritual practices. Pandrah Ka Yantra translates to “15th yantra” in English. This yantra consists of a square with nine boxes, each containing a number. The numbers in each row, column, and diagonal add up to fifteen. It's considered a symbol of happiness and prosperity, and worshiping it is believed to promote wealth, success, health, protection, and positive thinking.

The track opens with bell percussion before the main driving drum/bass groove in 15/8 kicks in. It's divided as 4+4+4+3, but I count it as 7 and a half in quarter notes. I'm really happy with the standout drum performance by Ron van Stratum. Originally, this song was titled Gnarly Sitar due to its electronic-like sitar sound, layered with a more traditional sitar tone. At the 2:38 mark, a sitar solo leads into a synth section inspired in part by the band UK. This is one of my favourite tracks on the album.

Track 11: Chromatron (Parts 4–5)
BT: The album closes with the remaining parts of track 7. A fast unison guitar/bass theme opens the track. At the 0:35 mark, the opening guitar pattern from Part 1 returns. This is Part 5, in which more chromatic guitar lines appear. The album ends with a bass guitar fade-out, hopefully inviting the listener to start the journey again.

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