Re-reading Albert Camus and listening to Spindrift’s Trio Studies simultaneously, it occurred to me that they might have something in common. And indeed, at least the environment in which Spindrift operates (like most free jazz musicians) is similar to that of Sisyphus, as interpreted by Camus. Similarly, the situation of musicians in improvised music is absurd and they are the heroes of this world. In an increasingly commercialized world, they survive thanks to their passions and their determination to devote themselves to music. However, who are they? Spindrift is an outstanding trio of German free jazz musicians of the second generation: Frank Paul Schubert (alto and soprano saxophone), Dieter Manderscheid (bass) and Martin Blume (drums). They have little interest in the ugly consumer-oriented part of the music industry, instead they concentrate on their love of playing - and therefore of life. Every new gig means moving the stone like the Greek hero, rolling it up the mountain and climbing a slope with it again and again. But unlike Sisyphus, they do this with great ease; we experience all the human self-assurance of three perfectly mastered instruments.
Trio Studies sets off at full speed, the first step is to get the rock rolling. Schubert sounds like a mixture of Ornette and Ayler, elegant and full of vibrato. Manderscheid pushes evenly and bumpily at the same time and Blume is the machine that gives the whole thing power. Even within the improvisation there are smaller heights to reach, here and there things slow down, you seem to need breathing space before finally reaching an intermediate goal - the end of the first climb. All in all, we are dealing here with eight sound-experimental works of art of the most exciting instant composing at the highest level. This is sometimes crystal clear, full of lightness and beauty (as in the second piece), sometimes more sluggish and tough (in a positive sense) as in the third piece. The mountain is not the same, it’s always different. The musicians are aware of this, their rock is not an enemy, it’s the symbol of the anticipation of the new, the unknown. So the fact that you can hardly earn any money with this music is not torture, but a sign of freedom. This is the whole secret joy of Spindrift and their music. Their destiny is theirs, and so is their music. They are the masters of their time. We watch them transform work into art. At any point in their playing together, the listener can hear asynchronous, weird yet beguilingly beautiful music that is the trio’s very own creation. Every gran of these lines, every sliver of this improvisation means the world to them. We have to imagine Spindrift as happy people. And because we are allowed to listen to them, we can be considered happy, too.
The album, Trio Studies, is available as a CD and as a download.
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