By Brian Earley
Disc Two
Friends, there is just so much music on Orbital that I needed to
write two reviews to cover all its beauty. Seriously, I was listening to a
new release by a fairly popular band this morning that clocks in around 40
total minutes of music. The first song on Disc Two of Orbital,
“Spherical Harmonics,” contains more than 41 minutes of improvised mayhem
by itself. The second improvisation, “Angular Momentum” runs nearly a
half-hour. That’s an hour and ten minutes of music on just disc two! Disc
one is over 70 minutes long. Damn! Ingo Frank, and Dave have some serious
stamina.
What makes disc two of Orbital really special is the addition of
pianist Marta Warelis. Recorded in Antwerp nine days before disc one, this
version presents Håker Flaten, Rosaly, and Rempis in an entirely disparate
context. If disc one was a propulsive trio romp, the addition of the
Polish born pianist results in a thunderstorm where the lighting is hunks
of lava.
Everything is big on this disc. The song lengths are big. Dave’s
saxophone is big and bluesy and sultry; just listen to the 13.00 minute
mark on “Spherical Harmonics” or, hell, check out Dave near the beginning
of “Angular Momentum” where his big, fat vibrato and breathy tone evoke Ben
Webster or even Johnny Hodges. The first nine minutes (nine minutes!) of
“Spherical” is nonstop energy-power music where Warelis swipes violently
upward in glissandos, thunder smacks the lower octaves of the keys, or
tumbles piano notes like a waterfall made of glass where everything breaks
but the momentum of the music. Ingo rams forward driving, chunks of bass
plucking, and Frank hisses, smashes, and makes the cymbals scream.
To be fair, “Angular Momentum” is filled with moments of quiet reflection,
intelligent space, and subtle interplay. In fact, I really admire Rosaly’s
discipline and restraint on this piece. He often holds back, drops out, or
plays softly, and the result is pure beauty, as it offers a chance for
listeners to hear Rempis and Warelis interact. Listen, for example, from
roughly 4:00 to 7:00 on this work. Warelis plays sustained midrange single
notes and a prepared piano that sounds like a stopped mbira or harpsichord
while engaging with Dave in a stunning and varied call and response
sequence (one of many on this disc).
The second work blows softly to a close. Warelis slows her pace, Frank
softens his thwacking and shaking, Ingo opens up sonic room in a near
ostinatto formation, and the music ends with the sound of only Dave’s
breath.
I couldn’t recommend this album more to both long time listeners of these
artists and to those finding themselves, like the rest of us, hearing Dave,
Ingo, and Frank play with Marta Warelis for the first time. The delight of
the trio making new of things past, and in its forking of lighting with
Warelis, both make this a valuable listening experience and an angular
tapestry of harmonics for our time.
Orbital can be purchased artist direct at
https://www.aerophonicrecords.com/catalog.
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