I tumbled into the rabbit hole of Soft Machine with a download of Third. From here it took me a bit of time to understand how it all came together - from the group's late Sixties psychedelic days to the jazz-rock of the early of the early Seventies, then to the numerous mutant offshoots that began already in the late Seventies: Soft Head and Soft Heap, and later with Soft Mountain, Soft Bounds, Soft Works, Soft Machine Legacy, and finally Soft Machine.
I’ve enjoyed many, if not all, of the incarnations of the ‘Soft-' groups that Hugh Hopper and Elton Dean spearheaded, except one: Soft Works. Even though the 2003 release Abracadabra was the great reunion of Hopper and Dean with long-time Soft Machine drummer John Marshall and guitar legend Allan Holdsworth, from such a line-up, I had expected just a bit more of a ‘kick' from the album. So, my hope was that Abracadbra in Osaka, a double album documenting a concert by the group back in the early aughts, would fill in the pieces that I felt the studio album missed. I am happy to report it does. Elton Dean's unique saxello seems just a little more sour, in a painfully good way; Hopper and Marshall’s playing is just a bit edgier to my ears; and Holdsworth, especially, kicks it up a notch or two.
The opening track on both the studio album and the live recording, 'Seven Formerly', starts slowly and builds to low-boiling point in both cases, but the studio recording version is softened a bit to much by synth and lacks that extra crunch that the live version brings. The Hopper penned track ‘First Train' similarly fares just a little better on the live recording, and Holdsworth's solo around the four-and-a-half minute mark reaches a climatic intensity. Soft Machine staple 'Kings & Queens' gets an airing on the live album too, which provides Dean essentially with a showcase to play an extended, relaxed solo over a suspenseful, familiar background.
A real plus from this new release, for me, is that I've come to appreciate the studio album better as well. The subtleties come into better contrast and the parts where the fusion becomes a bit too fusiony are easier to let pass by. Overall, a nice addition to the reincarnated Soft Machine’s discography. Also, be sure to check out the latest version of Soft Machine with Live at the Baked Potato, a nice document of an ever adapting band.
If there was ever a Zen record then maybe this is it? Kalimi is made up of Giovanni di Domenico (Fender Rhodes and electronics) and Mathieu Calleja (Drums), back with this excellent release of minimalist sound duos. Although the record is dated 2014 its taken awhile for the label, Silent Water Label, to put the record out. However, its a welcome addition to their excellent catalogue of contemporary jazz/improvised music releases which include GOING, reviewed earlier in 2015.
The sound and approach of Kalimi could be described as minimalist (although not in Steve Reich/Philip Glass terms). Built around the use of melody and punctuated noise (one could call it), is at moments truly hypnotic. The music is strongly based around developing the keyboard's ability to feedback and hold lingering sounds, along with drum beats which not only frame the music, but give the duo a direction. What makes the drum's approach so interesting is that Mathieu Calleja plays them in a relatively 'straight-ahead' manner, and not as abstract splashes of sound. This helps the music to build-up in an organic way and is in part what makes the music easily listenable, although clearly experimental.
Before saying a little about the music it seems (to me) that the record works well when heard as a sort of suit, and not as individual tracks. As record opens we are introduced to the delicate sound world of this duo. With tracks such as "forever high" (tk1) and "otona no kagaku"(tk6) the music hangs in the air ready to move in any direction. However, other pieces offer a more raunchy solution such as the brief "7.1" (tk2), or the fascinating "selfie my ass"(tk3), which much like a card player gradually revealing their hand, leads us into a dark musical territory. But nothing compares with the two heaviest pieces, the violent "b'hier" (tk4), and "9.2" (tk7), which jump straight in to surprise you with high energy sonic attacks, "9.2" is also the last track on the album which closes this excellent record.
Highly recommended to all who enjoy a mixture of jazz, noise and rock - a possible reference point (or 'tag') could be Supersilent?
I feel I owe a good deal of thanks to Soft Machine - it was many years ago now that Third blew my mind and led me circuitously to the tangentially related El Skid, which just led me deeper and deeper. My collection is now well stocked with Soft Machine, various Soft Heap and Head projects, and select pickings of the greater Canterbury scene.
Notorious for their changing lineup, 1974 saw Soft Machine competing their transformation from an avant-garde rock-jazz quartet to a Fusion jazz-rock quintet (you can see a nice chart of the line ups here). In fact, the albums Bundles and its follow-up Softs had some real biting guitar work from Allan Holdsworth and his successor John Etheridge - this from a band that had been more linked with the reedy bite of the organ and Elton Dean’s endlessly riveting saxophone work. The only member of the original band at this time was organist Mike Ratledge, though drummer John Marshall had joined a few years earlier after Robert Wyatt had left the group. Hugh Hopper's (fuzz) bass was replaced by Roy Babbington and his six string electric, and Dean by composer/keyboardist/woodwind player Karl Jenkins - both of whom, along with Holdsworth and Marshall, had been with Ian Carr's Nucleus at some point. So, it was this line up Jenkins, Ratledge, Babbington, Holdsworth, and Marshall, about to record the seminal fusion album Bundles, who appear on this DVD release.
That year at Switzerland's Montreux festival, the line up was heavy on the jazz-rock: along with Soft Machine was Billy Cobham’s Spectrum, Larry Coryell’s Eleventh House, and John McLaughlin's Mahavishnu Orchestra - a mouthwatering line-up 41 years later! Of this Soft Machine recording, I've certainly seen snippets of it on YouTube but to my knowledge, the whole set hasn't been available to date, and even if it had, it would have not looked and sounded so good. Cuneiform did a great job cleaning up and repairing the old tapes - the instruments are nicely separated and balanced and the video is as crisp as video is from the early 1970s. It’s fair to note that there are places where the audio quality changes or has some distortion at the edges, and as Cuneiform explains there were limitations to how much restoration could be done.
The repertoire is fairly well document and can basically be heard on the Floating World Live release from Moonjune Records, and most selections ended up on Bundles, but there are also some group improvisations and a medley from Sixth and Seventh. Following Holdsworth's vocalizations on Floating World is the nice solo piece ‘Ealing Comedy' from Babbington featuring some now classic effects. Ratledge and Marshall do an electronics/percussion duet that is both ahead of and right on time. It is a pleasure just to see the technology - the videographers focused in on some of the knobs, lights, and other fine looking things. It’s also great to see a young Allan Holdsworth making flawless transitions and delivering some lightning speed runs.
As a follow up to the NDR Jazz Workshop CD/DVD package from a couple years back, this is another excellent document of the group from one of it’s many creative peaks.
Hugh Hopper - Memories (Gonzo Media, 2014) ****
Hugh Hopper was the original bassist of Soft Machine, and had left the band by the time the '74 concert (he can be seen briefly in the NDR Jazzworkshp concert from 1973, but by then he was just stopping by to run experimental tape loops).
Memories is a box set or a series from Gonzo Media is releasing what will ultimately become a 10 CD set of archival recordings of Hopper’s work from his pre-Soft Machine early works from the mid-1960s to the more recent incarnations of his Franglo-Dutch bands and other collaborations. Hopper had a long career after Soft Machine and worked with Carla Bley, Elton Dean, Gary Windo, Lol Coxhill, Nick Evans, John Marshall, Robert Wyatt, Keith Tippett, Joe Gallivan and many others. He had also spent time towards the end of his life working with a rekindled Soft Machine Legacy led by guitarist John Etheridge. Hopper sadly passed away from Leukemia in 2009.
The box set collects the uncollected and the set I am referencing here today includes:
2014: Volume 3: North & South (with Mike Travis, Aberdeen, 1995)
2014: Volume 4: Four by Hugh by Four (Bimhuis, Amsterdam, 2000)
Vol 1 has some nice spoken word intros and stories from Hopper, and the first song is the jazz inflected 'Memories', composed by Hopper in the 1960s and sung by Robert Wyatt. It then skips ahead quite a bit forward to the work that Hopper was doing in the early aughts with 'Was a Friend' - a quiet raga-esque piece. He also visits some of his post-Soft Machine music like 'Sliding Dogs' and 'Miniluv' with the same group. Across the discs, we hear Soft Machine classics like 'Facelift' and many versions of his selections from 1984 and Monster Band, and it is rather interesting to hear the songs played by the different groups, at different tempos and with different approaches. Hopper's bass playing provides a bridge between the rock and jazz worlds, for example, his rendition of “Wanglo Saxon” on Vol 3 with Mike Travis, fuses a rather straight ahead jazz rhythm section with a extended fuzz bass solo.
I could rattle on and on about each album, but would rather leave it that the Memories set is as a real treat for Hopper and Soft Machine fans.
For all of those who haven't heard Marc Ducret's Tower series,
now is maybe the time to start. This record represents the last
instalment of an incredible journey through many musical territories,
yet with one musical thread tying them together, that of Marc Ducret's
original musical thinking. Tower-Bridgeis the fifth, and supposedly last part of the series (see below) which took as its inspiration Vladimir Nabokov's novel Ada. There
are copious liner notes - as liner notes throughout the various volumes
- which give some explanations to the connection between the music and
the book, but for this short review it is suffice to quote the Ayler
Record's presentation which states, "[t]he music [is] composed to convey
Nabokov's text complex structure and writing process"¹.
Although
I reviewed several albums from the series - digital versions sent by
Ayler records - so I haven't seen the covers. However, I did get a hard
copy of this latest record. I'll mention the music shortly but the
packaging of this disc merits a detour. The album is made up of double
CD, with triptych folding sleeve, a small booklet with extracts from
Nabokov's Ada, and an interesting fold-out with some notes from Ducret - which include a score of his composition Real thing #3. A last bonus is quite a crowd draw, access to exclusive video content, a 23 minute film by Sylvain Lemaire titled Tower in the Mist.
I won't tell you what's on the film, after all that would only spoil
the surprise! So, what can I say except buying a 'physical' copy is well
worth the money.
The music on the album is taken from
two live concerts recorded in Strasbourg in 2012, producing around a 100
minutes of music over the two CDs. Like the previous albums, this
recording re-examines pieces from the 'tower' series. An example such as
sur l'électricité (tk1 CD1), has been presented in two formats.
The first time was on volume two with Tim Berne: alto saxophone;
Dominique Pifarély: violin and Tom Rainey on drums, along with Ducret on
guitar. The second time was on volume four (an excellent album), where
Ducret performed a selection of these pieces in solo format on acoustic
guitar.² The appeal of Tower-Bridge lies more in the extended
performances of these pieces, and of course the line extended up that
performs them. The musicians, 12 in all, are the sum of all the albums
in the series, forming a sort of mini big-band. This produces plenty of
sparks and some fine music with powerful solos supported by tight
ensemble playing.
If you haven't heard Marc Ducret's
music before and you're open to rock meets free-jazz meets Zappa meets
contemporary classical music, then you'll love this. There's plenty of
dynamic interaction between the musicians. Ducret has a knack in
providing action-packed pieces, his rhythmic concept often develops
around tight interlocking contrapuntal lines to produce long melodies
which have a logic of their own. He also loves to use dissonance as a
tool, combining it with rhythm in a powerful combination.
There
is so much on this record it would be impossible to delve into each
piece. A few highlights include Tim Berne's inimitable alto leading the
way on sur l'électricité (tk1 CD1). This track has a lot of
information, a great theme, and plenty of muscular interludes with
several gripping solos. The fantastical atmospheres conjured up in Real thing #1
(tk2 CD1) builds around a succession of duet/trio sections leading
gradually to feature for the violin of Dominique Pifarély. Track 3 (CD1), real thing #2 has
a wonderful strident solo from Kasper Tranberg (trumpet) who manages to
ride over the heavy rocking ensemble, punctuated by powerful piano
chord clusters. Softly her tower crumbled into the Sweet Silent Sun (tk1 CD2) flies out of the speakers like an angry neighbour shouting. The final track of the album L'Ombra di Verdi (tk3 CD2) produces a mysterious theme in the closing half which hangs somewhere between a film noir theme and a 6/8 rock ballad.
What
else can we say about such a great record? I guess that if you haven't
heard Ducret before this is a good place to start, there's fine
compositions and performances all here. And, if you like this then
you'll need no encouragement to look into his work even further. As for
Marc Ducret fans, if you haven't got this one, buy it!
The website says this is a limited edition of 1000.
Here's
a video of the group live. The recording is more 'centred' sound-wise,
but here you get some idea of the groups sound, and size. If you look
for Ducret's Tower-bridge project on Youtube you'll find plenty of other
examples.
The musicians on this record are: Kasper Tranberg - trumpet;
Dominique Pifarély - violin; Tim Berne - alto saxophone; Matthias Mahler
- trombone; Fidel Fourneyron - trombone; Alexis Persigan - trombone;
Frédéric Gastard - bass saxophone; Antonin Rayon - piano; Sylvain
Lemêtre - percussion,vibraphone, xylophone, marimba; Tom Rainey - drums;
Peter Bruun - drums and Marc Ducret - electric guitar
¹ http://www.ayler.com/marc-ducret-tower-vol-1.html, accessed Sept. 6, 2014.
²
It's interesting to add that volume four is the only record that has
pieces unique to that record. There are a few pieces which are
re-examined from the other volumes, however, tracks: From a Distant Land; Sisters; Ada; ... A Distand Land; Sybil Vane, and Electricity (by Joni Mitchell), are to be found only on this album.
Readers be warned: the following album is firmly planted in the jazz-rock fusion category - though there is plenty of freedom to be found within these well crafted tunes...
Atmospheric melodies, biting guitar lines, driving complex rhythms all come together so seamlessly and fresh on Daniel Rosenboom's Fire Keeper that you might think the style was (re)invented here. Rosenboom is a trumpeter and composer from LA, he first came to my attention with his work with the woodwind master Vinny Golia a few years ago. We find him now starting the label Orenda and releasing this fiery album that pulls together often misused musical elements and puts them to good use.
The album kicks off with 'Leaving Moscow', which begins with the trumpet spinning an ethereal melody, but it is quickly picked up and inverted by Alexander Noice's incisive and crunchy guitar work ... and right here is where I throw in the cliche: it rapidly becomes some high octane music. The guitarist keeps the engines revved on the nervously twisting intro to the follow up track 'Seven on Seven'. Drummer Dan Schnelle and Bear Trax player Kai Kurosawa lock in tightly, keeping things moving along, even during the breakdown. Appearing about halfway in, the track splinters into free playing, and the guitarist delivers another combustible performance. Metallic touches from Gavin Templeton's flute also provides some nice texture. Deliberately primitive drumming and muted wailing trumpet change the album's direction a bit on 'With Fire Eyes', a track that digs deep into some heavy jazz-rock sludge. Other tunes, like 'Hush Money' starts off with a glam rock like intro only to find the stomping rhythm be festooned with knotty melodic passages.
It's not smooth, it's not forced, it's not free jazz and it's not really avant-garde, rather Fire Keeper is a wonderfully fresh take on the maligned f-word genre, and to my ears it's an album that shows how much life there still is in it.
A funk and soul music binge undertaken by John Stevens when he was laid up after surgery was the impetus for the group Away. Though it remains dwarfed next to Stevens’ accomplishments with the Spontaneous Music Ensemble, Away was the drumming giant’s unique way of tapping into the jazz-rock craze of the mid and late 1970s. Away released several albums on the Vertigo label in that time period, and recordings have been sporadically released in the years and decades since, but for the most part, much of the group’s output has been largely unavailable, existing only as assorted notations in the mind-boggling John Stevens discography. Over the past few years, however, Away bassist Nick Stephens has taken to releasing some vintage recordings on his own Loose Torque label, and it’s a wonderful thing. You see, Away was a group that made most fusion bands sound like mere fission.
Away at Home was recorded in 1978 at the Plough Stockwell, a frequent haunt of the band. For this gig, Jon Corbett joined the group, creating a formable funk-jazz sextet of sax, trumpet, drums, bass, and dueling electric guitars. While there’s no question this ensemble was wading into the same waters as Miles Davis, Weather Report, and others across the pond, there’s an energy continually present on Away at Home that seems sorely lacking from a lot of American electric jazz. Away at Home presents an unsubtle, driving music that both embraces the intoxicating headspace of a tightly locked groove and captures the intensity of the classic free jazz free-for-all. Away feared no tempo or crescendo.
Away at Home features four long tracks (and a short fifth piece), most of which are extended mash-ups of tunes from Away’s Vertigo LPs. “Relative Space” makes its mark with an unbearably catchy descending horn line, the track rocketing along until it eventually segues into the funky, cymbal-driven beat of “What’s That.” The beat is reprised much later at the end of the band’s set, sending the audience through the roof. It’s a perfect encapsulation of what made Away more remarkable than so many of their contemporaries: a small club exuberance that always trumps the bloated, arena-rock detachment that would become fusion’s downfall.
Away at Home is piece of jazz-rock history worth grabbing on to, especially when there’s currently so little from this group to go around. It’s also a side to John Stevens that some of his fans might not be aware of, and a great reminder of what a tireless, passionate force he was in all realms of this music.
The band : Robert Calvert - saxophones, Jon Corbett - trumpet, Nick Stephens - electric bass, Nigel Moyse - guitar, Martin Holder - guitar, John Stevens - drums.
Dodovoodoo was a revelation to me. That playing the ring modulated Fender Rhodes and pumping out sophisticated jazz rock à la Weather Report's I Sing the Body Electric was still possible, almost made me weep. In this cynical day and age where fusion has been a dirty word for a long time, this Nordic organ trio was making some of the finest of it to date.
It's been a couple of years since a proper release by Elephant9. 2010 brought Walk the Nile, and now the vinyl only 'Live at BBC' represents not only a nice place holder in the discography but also, to my ears, a document of how the group has grown even stronger since the last release.
The trio is Ståle Storløkken on various keyboards like the venerable Rhodes and Hammond organ. Storløkken currently plays in Terje Rypdal's group, and on a rare and recent show of Rypdal's in NYC, the organist nearly stole the show. Filling out the rest of the trio is Nikolai Hængsle Eilertsen on bass and Torstein Lofthus on drums.
I feel that this concert recording shows a deepening melodicism since their last outing. The songs are somewhat more accessible to the ear, maybe a bit pared back and rocking rhythmically and overall more satiating than the studio efforts. The climax of 'I Cover the Mountaintop' is visceral, you feel that while the climb was arduous but you may just do it again some time. 'Habanera Rocket' is an enjoyable tune that features an extensive keyboard solo that propels itself along at a fantastic clip. A galvanizing moment occurs in the tune as Lofthus takes a drum solo while Storløkken comps below, slowly building in ferocity until he can hold back no more.
A bit light on liner notes, the album features a cover festooned with the colorful geometric theme that has appeared in various incarnations on their other releases. The limited vinyl pressing is worth seeking out, as it is not a regurgitation of previous releases by any means, and the sound quality is excellent - the concert was originally a broadcast from BBC Radio 3's Jazz on 3. All the instruments are captured in their acoustic and electric glory.
Bassist Daren Burns describes his album Fear Is Not The Natural State Of Civilized People as 'post-fusion recording for the new world' and it is recording that is at once a comment on the world post-9/11 and fusion done freely and fiercely well.
The hard hitting passages on the opener, 'Gothalay' start off with a furious flood of sound from which Burns emerges with single electric bass note runs and distorted chords that eventually becomes interlocked with Craig Bunch's percussion. Burns' bass never settles into a steady groove but rather one that pulsates and pummels. Soon, trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith joins and proceeds to spit out melodic projectiles while pianist Sarah Phillips lends accompanying tonal clusters. Following the two, guitarist Scott Collins appears with a blast of distortion and begins shadowing Smith's lines until the two trade places and he delivers some scorching agile runs.
The next song, 'Gandhi', opens with Phillips delivering exploratory lines on the piano, over an undercurrent of droning tension. By the time the trumpet joins in, the song has become a slow burning fuse. It smolders and sizzles, and like watching the fuse progress, it's a study in anticipation.
The track 'Aung San Suu Kyi', begins with an extended slow build of percussive sounds and chant like droning, with sprinklings of melodic improvisations by the trumpet and piano. It's a melancholic and evocative soundscape. The album was recorded in 2009, before Aung San Suu Kyi's 2010 release from imprisonment and recent rise as a major political figure in Burma.
Of the albums theme of the struggle for freedom and equality, and its flip side, the fear and paranoia that causes people to willingly give it up, Burns writes:
This recording is dedicated to Goyathlay (Geronimo) the great Apache leader, Gandhi the Indian revolutionary, Aung San Suu Kyi the Burmese political prisoner, Fela Kuti the Nigerian fighter of governmental corruption, and anyone else who believes that life based on fear is not an option. Music Is the Weapon.
It's interesting to note that Burns is currently working in the beautiful chaparral and red rock splendor of Sedona, Arizona. While Sedona itself seemingly projects its own peaceful aura, the state of Arizona is currently a hot bed for the contentious immigration issues rippling across the US. Whether there is truly a connection is beyond my knowledge but the tension between natural beauty and freedom versus human suffering and struggle seems to frame this oft biting and deeply felt music.
I met Michael Coleman (the leader of Arts and Science) in Brussels quite a few years ago. He was on the usual European tourist trip with a friend of his - maybe Jordan Glenn, the drummer on this album? Michael told me about another interesting project called Schumann's Humans, a group playing the music of Schumann, but re-imagined. I remember checking out via MySpace the group and being highly impressed, but of course since then I'd lost track of Michael's groups and career. Well, time has caught up and here we are in 2012 with a record from Michael Coleman under the title 'Arts and Science - New You', and it's to my ears a corker! I should also add, for all those that read the recent Aram Shelton review, that this is another record out on the excellent Singlespeed Music label.
If you're ready to be taken on a burning trip of musical ideas and styles, then this is the one you might indeed be well advised to check out. If you remember the free wheeling blowing and sheer eclecticism of Human Feel then you'll already have a vague notion of what the music could be. Although not as 'free', it does however have a power and imagination that easily matches that genre breaking group. The groups makeup does (in a way) mirror some of Human Feel's elements as it's two sax front line, no bass, drums and in this case keyboard may suggest. Each of the musicians deserves a mention as everybody plays sublimely well, blowing hot and cold all over the music, prepared to take the risks needed to give the music an excitement and energy that keeps the listener pinned to their seat!
Both Jacob Zimmerman (alto sax, flute, percussion), Matt Nelson (Tenor sax, effects, percussion) are new names to me, and a revelation also. Both players seem to mold together to form a front line that instinctively thinks as one. Their solos sometimes scream out of the speakers and at others come together to form tight ensemble work. Jordan Glenn (drums) is certainly a key player in this complex music which at times sounds not unlike early King Crimson in it's ensemble work. The modern melodies fly out at you never letting one guess which direction the music will take. 'Seram' (Tk 7) swings away at a fast tempo, whilst the gorgeous melody of 'Shunting' (Tk 8) has an almost sinister obstinate riff for the two saxes to blow around. Baby Boner (Tk 3) turns into a polyrhythmic piece, like a pigmy melody taken straight from the rain forests. 'Scientology' (Tk 9) makes use of gongs and bowed cymbals leading us to a beautiful and delicate melody with extra horns and a guitar. And the final brooding 'Jazz/Shadow' (Tk 10) with strangely distorted recorded horns and keyboard, roll like the sea with the two horns wailing above. Every track is a winner!
The myriad ideas of Michael Coleman really keep each track fresh, and although there is clearly a huge range of musical styles, somehow Michael manages to make the whole thing completely coherent. His keyboard playing (only keyboards) never dominates the ensemble, yet there are constant ideas flowing back and forth. His use of the sound palettes available is always well chosen ; mellotrons, percussive glockenspiels, tiny pianos, old wurlitzers, etc. However, what is clear is that this is no solo record, but a true group project that live must be very exciting to hear indeed! The recording technique and sound also used on this record is also very interesting, at times clear and at others heavily treated, all of which (I imagine) is intended.
Highly recommended to all those who love King Crimson, rock, out jazz, Human Feel, downtown scene, pygmies...!
By Stef
In 1994, when ECM re-released Terje Rypdal's double LP "Odyssey" from 1975 without the twenty-three minute long "Rolling Stone", which ended the original version, I thought Manfred Eicher had gone crazy or senile, or both. He had taken away one of the best pieces of the album. A long track, sure enough, with some Mahavishnu references at the beginning and throughout, then turning into a mid-tempo psychedelic piece, propulsed forward by a simple and repetitive guitar riff, and some powerful yet subtle drumming. A perfect apotheosis and grand closer for this great album.
The band consists of Terje Rypdal on electric guitar, soprano sax and synth, Brynjolf Blix on organ, Svein Christiansen on drums, Sveinung Hovensjø on 4- and 6-string bass, and Torbjørn Sunde on trombone.
The album starts with the ominous "Darkness Falls", and it creates a universe of absolute desolation and icy coldness, incredible pace and some rough moments of drama that will keep the listener spell-bound till the very last notes of the now recuperated last track.
Like his Norwegian compatriot Jan Garbarek did on the saxophone, Rypdal managed to create one of the most recognizable sounds on his instrument : an icy, very expansive tone, full of reverb, in a way incredibly romantic because full of passion, but then of the kind that abhores intimacy but embraces distant horizons.
The re-release comes as a 3-CD box, adding "Unfinished Highballs", a recently unearthed 1976 radio recording of the quartet with the Swedish Radio Jazz Group, the station's big band. "Unfinished Highballs" is interesting, a kind of early precursor to "Crime Scene", and a total contradiction with Odyssey. The lengthy, merciless and expansive icyness of Odyssey is now replaced by dense, varied and warm horn tones, somewhat outdated synth sounds, and an overall musical quality that is hesitating between real big band and kitsch, somewhat failing in its ambition. There is no real tension, less sense of drama, no big surprises, no radical vision. Nice to have, though not essential.
But to have the integral Odyssey back on one CD, is a major happening.
Both Vijay Iyer and Rudresh Mahanthappa have enjoyed a lot of visibility and accolades over the last few years. Iyer’s Historicity, from 2009, made a lot of critics’ best-of lists for that year. And Mahanthappa struck gold with his partnership with the great Bunky Green on 2010’s Apex. On the discs being reviewed here, both recorded in 2008 but not released until last year, both artists cover terrain that they have explored throughout their careers: namely, offering ambitious attempts to draw liberally from the Indian classical tradition in shaping their distinctive jazz visions. For the most part, they are very successful, and each of these recordings has a lot to offer.
Rudresh Mahanthappa – Samdhi (ACT, 2011) - ****
Mahanthappa’s release is the most diverse stylistically, as it embodies classical Indian elements but also adds electronics on several tracks, and utilizes rhythms that are often funk and rock-influenced. Indeed, in many respects one could label this a “fusion record,” particularly with the groove-driven work of guitarist David Gilmore, electric bassist Rich Brown, and drummer Damion Reid. However, percussionist Anantha Krishnan continually adds another dimension to the music with his lively playing of the mridangam and kanjira. It’s prominent enough to spur the other players along, while not weighing down the recording or becoming too obtrusive. Mahanthappa’s melodies are strong and intricate throughout, and the rhythmic underpinnings provided by the rest of the group consistently anchor and propel the music forward. This is especially evident on the second track, “Killer,” which offers an aggressive and complex melody but which is really sustained by the fantastic rhythmic foundation provided by Mahanthappa’s associates. Gilmore in particular offers terrific unison and responsive playing with Mahanthappa in establishing the melody, but then later in the tune kicks into crunchy rhythmic support behind Mahanthappa that takes the track to another level altogether. “Playing With Stones” and “Breakfastlunchanddinner” are other examples of the rhythm team providing the bounce and direction needed to keep the songs interesting and cohesive. And it’s worth noting that Mahanthappa’s playing throughout the record is superb: he combines a powerful melodic sensibility in his playing with a hard-edged intensity that allows him to blow the roof off when it’s called for.
Admittedly, it’s not a perfect recording. Depending on one’s tastes, Mahanthappa’s use of electronics on a few of the tracks is either invigorating or a distraction. It works in some situations and not in others. It’s most troublesome on the seventh track, “Parakram #2,” which involves what sounds like Mahanthappa overlaying another sax part (or two) on top of his melody line, and which then brings in an awkward funk beat and additional synthesizer parts later in the song, as the whole thing gradually pulls apart. It’s all a bit much, and seems almost gimmicky at times. In addition, the closing tune, “For All the Ladies,” veers perilously close to pop-jazz with a melody that’s a bit too saccharine for my preference. But a couple missteps aside, this is a very enjoyable and engaging record, and it definitely holds up to repeated listenings.
Vijay Iyer with Prasanna and Nitin Mitta – Tirtha (ACT, 2011) - ****
Iyer’s record also has its charms, although it’s somewhat less ambitious in terms of merging disparate musical styles. It’s nevertheless a fine showcase for the range of Iyer’s playing, as well as that of his colleagues, Prasanna (on guitar and voice) and Nitin Mitta (on tabla). In contrast to Mahanthappa’s Samdhi, which is clearly Mahanthappa’s project and features him as the dominant voice in the ensemble, this record feels more like a fully collaborative venture, with all three musicians playing a more or less equal role in the proceedings. This is especially evident on “Tribal Wisdom,” which begins with Prasanna’s Carnatic singing and Iyer’s strong rhythmic pattern in the left hand, with Mitta’s tabla floating on top. From there, Prasanna comes in on guitar, and all three musicians wind their way through a memorable musical journey with each playing a critical role. This is also evident on “Gauntlet,” which though clocking in at just a couple of minutes gives all three musicians a chance to work closely together with a rapid-fire musical pattern being developed equally by Mitta, Prasanna and Iyer. One wishes the track had lasted a bit longer, in fact, as just when it really gets going it abruptly ends.
As a pianist, Iyer has always stood out for the percussive sensibility and rhythmic diversity of his playing. We can hear plenty of that in most of these tunes—including “Tribal Wisdom” and “Polytheism,” where Iyer offers consistently imaginative and jaunty phrases in dialogue with Prasanna, who also stands out on this track. Iyer likes to build tension through repeated patterns that gradually evolve and develop in different directions, and this makes his playing particularly engaging and intriguing.
The only drawback to the recording is a certain sameness to a few of the tunes, which while pleasant, didn’t do always enough to distinguish themselves or sustain attention. Iyer’s at his best when he’s really working it—with the dynamic, assertive side of his playing coming to the fore. On a few of the tracks, he simply seems too reserved—this was especially noticeable on tracks like “Abundance” and “Falsehood,” where Iyer’s playing was pretty and meditative, but I found myself wanting him to let loose a bit more.
All told, these discs represent the kind of cross-cultural vision we’ve come to expect from Iyer and Mahanthappa. Both excel in finding ways to bring the jazz tradition into conversation with Indian classical forms, and the caliber of musicianship is very strong throughout. Both discs are enthusiastically recommended.
When speaking about Bobby Previte you're talking about the roots of the New York downtown scene(*). Previte and musicians, John Zorn, Ellery Eskelin, Wayne Horowitz, Elliot Sharp or Bill Frisell, were all in at the beginning of this whole movement which celebrates the alternative side of what improvised music could/should be. Previte's music has always been a mix of inspiring and challenging writing with great soloists, mostly very accessible, and certainly never less than inspiring His groups (or projects) have ranged from solo work, the 'Weather Clear, Track Fast' septet, 'The Pan Atlantic Band' and a nice duo with Marc Ducret. As a drummer/composer his writing pays as much attention to melody as to rhythm, and naturally the interaction with his bands certainly produces sparks as on this record and possibly the sum of those elements, great melodies, rolling beats, tight arrangements and stellar soloing from all concerned.
New Bump is made up of long time associates; Bill Ware (vibes), Ellery Eskelin (sax), Brad Jones (bass) and - of course - Bobby Previte on drums. A powerful group that shows their skill and experience after having played together since years, playing a punchy jazz that's melodic and modern. Bill Ware plays equally strong vibes either as an accompanist or soloist. It's an instrument that lends itself to so many styles as testifies the recent playing of Chris Dingman, Jason Adasiewicz or even the mixed vibes lines in Tortoise. Ellery Eskelin is a sax player who remains a true original. His playing is a marvel to hear, a truly inspired saxophonist with an amazing sound concept and soloing style that is truly his own. Able to play convincingly in all areas of music, and someone who deserves wider recognition outside of the 'musicians in the know' circle. Together Eskelin and Ware equally divide the front line job of melody and soloist yet there are many moments when the two players shadow each other, creating lines inspired by the other. Previte and Brad Jones play their role sitting neatly on the fence between jazz and a more rock-ish style. Bobby Previte's writing on this release encompasses boogaloo, rock, jazz and more, giving the two front line players plenty of material to work with. Tunes such as 'The Saint', 'D is for Drums' all rock along, or the changing sections of 'The Inexorable March Towards Brutality' keep you guessing, in fact all the tunes are excellent. 'Don't Tell Pilar', 'Client 9' and 'Probably Not' all have wonderful melodies and plenty of exciting twists and turns, and to add to the whole every solo is truly exciting.
You're not going to get any free form improvisations or experimental sound manipulations just - as David Lynch (@AMG) wrote - "fiery jazz expressionism and layered counterpoint that suggests elements of contemporary minimalism". A great album that doesn't brake any rules or new ground but is truly absorbing from start to finish. Highly Satisfying!
* = Of course the Downtown Scene covered many areas of music from minimalism of Steve Reich and Philip Glass, performance art of Laurie Anderson and many others. Check out Wiki's entry on downtown to get a general idea.
With some regularity we get tribute bands for Coltrane and Miles, and that should be no surprise, considering the musical revolution those giants had on the history of music. What is unfortunately also not a big surprise is the lack of quality of the tribute bands. But luckily there are exceptions.
My favorite band, and yours too without a doubt is "Yo Miles!", led by Henry Kaiser and Wadada Leo Smith, but there are also some fun alternatives, like the Miles Tribute Band from Scandinavia. The former re-issued parts of the records released on Cuneiform some years ago, and added some unreleased material.
Yo Miles! Shinjuku (There Records, 2010) ****
The first of these albums is called "Shinjuku", and it brings the tracks "Shinjuku", "Who's Targeted", "Miles Star" and "Willie Dixon" from "Sky Garden" (Cuneiform, 2004). One piece is new: "Muhamed Ali".
The playing is again fantastic, full of drive, technical skills and musical joy. It starts with this kind of mad tribal hypnotism that makes you want this music never to stop, followed by lots of quieter moments but full of crackling intensity, in the best Miles Davis vein, allowing especially Wadada Leo Smith to go deep into his known emotional spritualism on trumpet. And the album ends with a phenomenal duet between the trumpeter and Zakir Hussain on tabla, this almost becoming Smith's second nature to perform with percussionists.
The band is Wadada Leo Smith on trumpet, Henry Kaiser, Mike Keneally and Chris Muir on electric guitars, Michael Manring on bass, Steve Smith on drums, Karl Perazzo on percussion, Greg Osby on alto, John Tchicai on tenor and soprano, Tom Coster on keyboards, and Zakir Hussain on tabla drums.
"Lightning" brings us tracks from "Upriver" (Cuneiform, 2004) : "Thunder & Lightning", "Macero", and one from "Sky Garden" : "Cozy Pete". Here you get three additional tracks, recorded live with the Rova Sax Quartet guest starring on the percussion-heavy "Tsapiky Frelimo", a wild piece somehow holding the middle between Mahavishnu, Weather Report and Miles Davis.
The added pieces are great, starting again with a great duet between trumpet and electric piano on "Still Sunrise".
To hear the live version of "Miles Dewey Davis III Great Ancestor" in a live version is fantastic, with the whole band moving forward on the magnificent pulse of the electric bass and the percussion, with guitar and keyboards adding the side colors for the soloists. You can only get up and dance when you hear this stuff. I usually hate the sound of rapid fire electric bass, but here it works to perfection.
The band is Wadada Leo Smith on trumpet, Henry Kaiser, Mike Keneally and Chris Muir on electric guitars, Michael Manring on bass, Steve Smith on drums, Karl Perazzo on percussion, Greg Osby on alto, John Tchicai on tenor and soprano, Tom Coster and Mike Keneally on keyboards.
Colin Town HR Big Band - Visions Of Miles (In+Out Records, 2009) ***
It is somewhat unfair to review Colin Town album in this context, because the British composer brings Miles Davis's electric music more into mainstream territory, played a German big band. It is a challenge like expecting a big truck to be as flexible in taking high speed turns in the road as a rally car, but somehow they kind of manage. The band covers the themes quite faithfully, playing compositions like "Bitches Brew", "Tutu", "Calypso Frelimo", "Agharta", "In A Silent Way" and other pieces.
The great thing is that these compositions really stand their ground, still sounding fantastically compelling and powerful. Let's hope the performance will guide listeners to the original.
Colin Towns: arrangements, direction; Heinz-Dieter Sauerborn: alto and soprano saxophones, flute and alto flute; Oliver Leicht: soprano saxophones, flute, alto and bass flute; Rainer Heute: baritone saxophone, bass and contrabass clarinet; Andy Greenwood: trumpet, flugelhorn; Thomas Vogel: trumpet, flugelhorn; Martin Auer: trumpet, flugelhorn; Axel Schlosser: trumpet, flugelhorn; Gunter Bollman: trombone, euphonium; Peter Feil: trombone, euphonium; Christian Jaksjø: trombone, euphonium; Manfred Honetschläger: bass trombone; Martin Scales: guitar; Vladislav Sendecki: piano, Fender Rhodes, keyboards; Thomas Heidepriem: bass; Farouk Gomati: percussion; Wolfgang Haffner: drums
This album led by French trumpeter Frédéric Collignon starts really strong, with the Davis' compositions "Billy Preston" and "Bitches Brew", full of drive and power. The band is Médéric Collignon on pocket trumpet and voice, Frank Woeste on Fender Rhodes 73, Frédéric Chiffoleau on double-bass and electric bass, and Philippe Gleizes on drums.
That is the good news. Things start turning a little strange when Collignon starts singing, not really my cup of tea, on "Early Minor", with a four person horn section. Unfortunately Collignon keeps up the scat singing on "Shhh Peaceful". On "Ife" he starts changing the sound of his trumpet electronically to the extent of extorting silly sounds that could have come from a seventies moog synth, which is even exaggerated even more on "Interlude". "Nem Um Talvez" is accompanied by background vocals.
The album ends with Led Zeppelin's "Kashmir". I can't believe how four musicians with the skills of this band can so utterly destroy their own music and the example they take it from by adding non-essential stuff and style-breakers. A pity.
If only his album had sounded like this clip by the band, it would have been great.
The Rova Quartet are Larry Ochs on tenor and sopranino saxophones, Bruce Ackley on soprano and tenor saxophones, Steve Adams on alto and sopranino saxophones, Jon Raskin on baritone, alto and sopranino saxophones. The Nels Cline Singers are Nels Cline on guitar, Devin Hoff on bass and Scott Amendola on drums. Apart, these two bands already bring genre-bending music. Together, under the name of "Celestial Septet", they push the limits even further.
The album starts with one of the most magnificent compositions I have heard in a while. The title, César Chávez, refers to the founder of the American United Farm Workers Union. The piece, composed by Amendola, is at the same time sad, dark, intimate, menacing, overwhelming and magnificent. It is slow, with one sax playing the lead theme, and the three others playing in different layers around it, with the drums, bass and guitar creating a dark and gloomy backdrop : stunning! The second piece is of a different nature, more abstract, with odd rhythm and arrangements, somewhat quirky and fun. In the ensuing improvisations, the musicians manage to see this bizarre concept through, not an easy feat. The longest and central piece, "Whose To Know", is a tribute to Albert Ayler (again!), with a wealth of influences and concepts seamlessly evolving one into the other : it is rock, it is jazz, it is modern music: raw, sensitive, deep and rich, with in the middle of the piece an unbelievable cataclysm of saxophones screaming, and gradually shifting into bass and guitar minimalism, only to end in the most Ayleresque of fashions. The following piece sounds like a marching band in which a berserk John McLaughlin got lost. The last track, "The Buried Quilt", is an experimental composition by Nels Cline, eery and disorienting, with quiet moments alternating with thunder storms, yet ending as magnificently as the album begins.
You get the idea : lots of variation, maybe a little too much, but played by artists who like the broad sweeps of new musical ideas, broad adventurous brush strokes on a new and open canvas. Recommended.
The Nels Cline Singers - Initiate (Cryptogrammophone, 2010) ****
It rarely happens that I write a review on the day that the album is released, but well, it so happened that I had already planned the review above. Have I listened to it? Yes, I did. Have I listened enough to make a good judgment? Possibly not. But who cares? You are the judge, I merely point out what's new and worthwhile.
First impression : the trio pushes their own boundaries again, and get better at each time. In addition to the line-up mentioned above, Cline uses electronics, Hoff as well and switches to electric bass at times, Amendola plays mbira too and effects.
Second impression : lots of variation, from electric Miles fusion ("Floored"), to weird sonic soundscapes, including unusual almost choral background at times (on the fantastic "Divining"), to intimistic moments of quiet meditation on acoustic instruments ("Grow Closer"), electronic and industrial experiments ("Scissor/Saw"), cinematic pieces ("King Queen" - holding the middle between King Crimson and Santana!), hypnotic repetitive power play ("Mercy"), pure sonic soundscapes ("Into It"), wild and fascinating high tension energy ("Fly Fly").
The first CD is recorded in the studio, the second CD is a live performance, offering the same range of musical variation, and ending with a wild, long almost funky fusion work-out, with pounding drums, pumping bass, and scorching wah-wah pedal.
Swedish drummer Bengt Berger made one masterpiece, "Bitter Funeral Beer", an astonishing world jazz album beyond category, that is as hypnotizing as it is guaranteed to move you to tears as well. Yet the rest of his musical output is of a quite doubtful level and unequal quality, often quite traditional, boppish, or plain silly.
On Beches Brew, he combines it all, great compositions, with great influences from Indian traditional music, alternated with more or less interesting Scandinavian folk, silly beer brawl songs and boppish pieces. To make matters worse, some of the sounds, and especially the guitar, but also the keyboard at times, appear to have skipped a few decades, as if there had been no evolution with the instrument since the early seventies.
The band consists of Thomas Gustafsson on soprano and tenor saxophones, Jonas Knutsson on soprano, alto and baritone saxophones, Lindha Kallerdahl on voice, Max Schultz on guitar, banjo, bass and voice, Mats Öberg on keyboard, harmonica and voice, Bengt Berger on drums and percussion.
Some of the music is excellent. Some is awful. Even in the excellent pieces, you find some ugly sounds, or just lack of quality : Linda Kallerdahl has a great voice, but she doesn't master the Indian voice inflections, unfortunately, which leads to some painful moments. I wish a great producer like Manfred Eicher could have been involved in this. The material is here, the output unfortunately not. There is no unity, there is no coherence, it's a mixed bag. Studio pieces alternate with live pieces, sometimes even of the same compositions. In short, it's a mess, but one full of jewels.
So, here is my advice : just download the tracks 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 16, 17 and 18 (a live version of 7). That's more than half the album. Forget about the rest. What remains is 45 minutes of great compositions, with splendid themes, African and Asian influences, both rhythmically and melodically, some reminiscent of "Bitter Funeral Beer", with great singing by Kallerdahl in Swedish, especially on the long "Dagar, Djur", some classical concepts, and excellent soloing by the band, and cleverly arranged on top. Organised in such a way, the music gets some unity and coherence.
World jazz fans shouldn't miss those tracks.
PS - the reference to Miles Davis' Bitches Brew in the title is only a play with words : Berger's nickname is Beche, yet there is no musical ressemblance whatsoever.
I praised the Lucien Dubuis Trio before and here also. The Swiss band, with Lucien Dubuis on alto sax and contrabass clarinet, Roman Nowka on bass and guitar, and Lionel Friedli on drums, is a real band for the boys, one that assembles everything which is fun, rhythmically, melodically, in terms of soloing and in terms of sound. It has the attitude and the quality of the better police movies or westerns - the kind of thing that only boys enjoy : roughness, shooting, car chases, jumping off buildings, smashing things once in while, action and action, some machism, some totally incorrect attitude, with the necessary jokes and witticisms in between, but especially, action without time for psychology or philosophy or sociology or any other speed bumps. And just that little level of romance to get the hormones flowing. Well, this is kind of the musical equivalent to these movies.
Teaming up with Marc Ribot on guitar only doubles the fun. The trio is highly entertaining by themselves, but Ribot adds just that little thing that makes it all even more attractive, from the scorching wah-wah solo on the first piece (think Ritchie Blackmore), or the sweetest Latin melodies (à la Cubanos Postizos), combined with the very low contrabass clarinet sounds a really great combination, or weird fretless sounds (or is it slide guitar?), jazzy sounds, or rapid fire unison lines in the most modern mutant funk or pumping rock.
You get the gist. No slow moments. Only great musical fun, with all the necessary ingredients that make up the cliché, only too good to be called that way : rough and screaming soloing, pumping rhythms, disciplined duels, magnificent skills, instrumental acrobatics, compositional variation, and even the Zappa-esque lyrics on "Shit Love". Dubuis' compositions are excellent : he always finds the right angle to tell his story, compact, full of drive and intelligence, with "La Danse Des Machines" without a doubt the best track. And the playing is fabulous too : one of the most rhythmic bands on the scene today.
And on top of it all, you get a DVD with it, with creatively edited rehearsal material.
Your humble servant is a great fan of the "Bitches Brew" period of Miles Davis, so when young bands bring materials that is influenced by the master, it is always with interest that I listen to them. Two new epigones recently albums that would broadly fit within this category.
Agent-K - Mouvements (CDBaby, 2009) ***
Agent-K is a band created by bassist Kenny Cordova, with David Burgos on trumpet & flugelhorn, Max Farber on keys, and Bobby Macintyre on drums. The references to the electric Miles are more than obvious, including the sound of the trumpet and of the electric piano, and if you stay in the same zone, you of course elicit a comparison which is hard to win. That being said, the music is worth a listen, rhythmic, atmospheric and fun.
Iron Kim Style is Dennis Rea and Thaddaeus Brophy on guitar, Bill Jones on trumpet, Ryan Berg on bass and Jay Jaskot on drums. The band brings a quite interesting mix of jazz and rock, strong compositions and subtle playing. Yes, Miles is present in spirit, and so is McLaughlin, yet less in the pyrotechnics and more in the overall stylistic development. Another great advantage is the compactness of the compositions, which helps them avoid the trap of the lengthy elaborations in which usually only the best can survive*.
Creating a unique voice is not easy, and especially not in the very crowded fusion genre of rock and jazz, but what this French band creates is totally unusual, rich and intense. The band consists of Paul Brousseau on keyboards, voice and drums, Maxime Delpierre on guitars and effects, Hugues Mayot on sax, Philippe Gleizes on drums, and Jean-Philippe Morel on bass and effects. This is possibly one of the darkest albums I have heard in years. The rock rhythms are heavy, over which slow gloomy, unison themes of sax, guitar and keyboard are woven, with electronics, ambient sounds and the slow declamation of texts in Russian. The rhythmic backbone is industrial, repetitive, like heavy production machinery churning out endless identical products at the end of an assembly line. The great tension in the music arises from the solo instruments, trying to escape this repetitive horror, trying to liberate themselves, complaining, yearning, pleading in the meantime. Once in a while, the tune of the piece becomes joyful, almost ironic, as a sugary coating to hide the horror beneath, as on "Stalker AT79". But beauty has its place too, as the slow sax solo on "FSY Tokyo", played with a background of a-rhythmic bells, metal sounds and undefined scraping. Despite the wide variety of approaches in the 15 tracks, the coherence is extremely strong, including in the art work of the album, which depicts "Worker and Kolkhonitza", a Soviet sculpture made by Vera Moukhina in 1937. The band creates a musical world, something apart, very profound without falling into the trap of exaggeration. It is not about the effects, it's about the music. It is also very French, continuing the roads taken by Camisetas and Limousine, but taking it a step further. There is a little bit more drama, more cinematic effect, more staging, but that's part of the listening fun. Not everything works though, and in my mind the last track could have been left out, but that's a minor comment. Despite the music's dark edge, the ultimate hope for humanity message comes through loud and clear. Absolutely impressive.
With "Le Sens De La Marche", French guitarist Marc Ducret sets up an ambitious project, combining tightly composed and orchestrated pieces, with room for improvisation and creative excursions, mixing fusion, rock, big band, ambient sounds and even moments that are reminiscent of soundtracks. It is ambitious, because the music wants to tell a lot, with the directness and drive of rock music and the subtleties of jazz, with the power of a horn section, but also adding some grit and dirt in the process, avoiding the smoothness of fusion. It is also ambitious because Ducret started with the project in 2003, working on it over the years, refining, adding, changing, and that's quite clear immediately, there is lots to hear, I mean lots ... a kind of "magnum opus". The band further consists of Bruno Chevillon on bass, Eric Echampard on drums, Antonin Rayon on piano, fender rhodes, and clavinet, Paul Brousseau on keyboards and samplers, Tom Gareil on vibes and marimba, Matthieu Metzger and Hugues Mayot on sax, Yann Lecollaire on clarinet, Pascal Gachet on trumpet, and Jean Lucas on trombone.
This is quite a band, and that gives the music a density and heaviness that is not usually to my liking, but it is quite well arranged, with an excellent sound quality, especially because it was recorded live. And as Ducret himself says: "I am too unhappy in the studio". And the audience really appreciates the music, and rightly so, because Ducret manages to infuse fusion with content and creative tension.
At moments it reminds me of Zappa in his instrumental period, with sudden shifts and changes. The different pieces all have a suite-like approach, with lengthy elaborations, rapid-fire exchanges, and unexpected variations in tempo. Some moments, such as the intro of "Tapage" have the fun sound that could have come from Zappa, but many other pieces have the kind of dark and menacing seriousness, with a strong emotional component. The one piece that has a totally different quality is "Aquatique", recorded in 2003 already, but in its slow, floating, almost intimate space-jazz style, adding quite an interesting contrast to the rest of the album. The highlight of the album is "Nouvelles Nouvelles Du Front", a 26 minute work-out, that starts in the same vein as "Aquatique", but then moves on with a highly rhythmic forward drive, almost funky, with the full horn section, as soloists and as a band creating some real emotional power. This album is too composed to my liking, as said, but for those of you who are more open-minded to fusion and tightly orchestrated music, it will be a treat.
Now that we're in the mood for something else, here is another interesting album: Elephant9 with Dodovoodoo, the brainchild of Norwegian jazzers and rockers Ståle Storløkken (Supersilent, Humcrush) on keyboards, Nikolai Eilertsen (The National ... Full DescriptionBank) on guitar and bass, and Torstein Lofthus (Shining), on drums. On many of his other albums, Storløkken has a tendency to get totally sucked up into electronics, but here it's the real thing : hammond organ, fender rhodes, synthesizer, and with a rhythm section that just does not stop. It starts with high tempo and the tempo hardly ever relaxes for the whole album, with the exception of "Hymne", which is played on church organ and is as slow and solemn as it gets. But that's just a very temporary slowdown, then the whole machine gets back at full speed for the rest of the tracks. It is also very 60s or early 70s because of the instruments used, but none of those early fusion bands had half the energy of these guys. Two of the tunes are Joe Zawinul originals ("Doctor Honoris Causa" and "Directions"), and musically there are references to Weather Report, but also to MMW and Miles, but those are just superficial. This band is not copying or playing covers. What they bring is highly original and energetic. Great stuff.
