Stephen Gauci, Kirk Knuffke, Ken Filiano - Chasing Tales (RelativePitch, 2014) ****

By Paul Acquaro

Sometimes I compose my reviews while driving. No, I’m not typing and driving, rather I’m taking advantage of the wild world of text-to-speech and as we all know, what comes out is sometimes so wonderfully dinged up by the Internet that it becomes something rather unique. Case in point? My review of the excellent Chasing Tails by the trio of Stephen Gauci, Kirk Knuffke and Ken Filiano. My review began:

"There's a certain post-bop sensibility to Chasing Tails. The sax, cornet, and bass line up is a bit unusual,” - so far, a little clean up needed but ok, but then - "but you track like ghosting, cheese saxophone play keep a steady pulse”.

Did I say that? No, I'm hardly that poetic ... Ok, now seriously folks:

The aforementioned instrumentation is indeed unusual, but it works quite well. Perhaps it is Filiano’s percussive bass plucking and Knuffke's rhythmic comping on the cornet that keep things bouncing along so well, but right from the first track, “Epee”, where Gauci has a fantastic run on the sax, you know this is a special album. The same can be said for “Ghosting”, the second track, which begins with a delightfully melodic solo from Knuffke. The interplay between cornet and the bass is incredibly precise, and when Gauci joins in and the conversation turns into a dialog between the sax and the bass, things really get cooking. The next track, “Boogaloo", begins with abstract counterpoint between the sax and cornet; however, as 'out' as the music gets, the songs never lose their melodic bearings.

The interconnectedness of the three musicians on this album is just great, there's a lot of breathing room in the tunes even as they intertwine quite precisely. Fiiliano's bass playing is exceptional - his pulse, his note choices and his solos are exceptional. The same really could be said for both Knuffke and Gauci, there are no missteps or empty stretches in the music, the ideas just keep coming track after track.

Half improvised, half comprised of compositions from the three members, there is a lot to dig into and enjoy here. And indeed, that ghosting saxophone keeps a steady pulse!

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Nicole Mitchell's Black Earth Ensemble - Intergalactic Beings: Xenogenesis II (FPE Records, 2014) ****½

By Matthew Grigg

The mission statement for Nicole Mitchell's Black Earth Ensemble "is to inspire the human spirit with thought-provoking beauty and to present a positive, healthy and culturally aware image of African Americans", the group having been named Black Earth to "honor the feminine source that our lives depend on—Mother Earth." Intergalactic Beings manages to both achieve this goal and present an alternative vantage point to consider these ideas. Inspired by the science fiction writing of Afro-futurist author Octavia Butler's 'Xenogenesis' novels, Mitchell's second suite based on these texts seeks to "express the perspective of intelligent extraterrestrials that look with horror at our human contradictions", and tells a journey (both physical and emotional) of "a lone woman in this strange place far from Earth".Mitchell is best known as a flautist, regularly topping Downbeat's Critics Poll, her command of her instrument (C, Alto & Bass flutes in addition to piccolo and occasional vocal contributions) has seen her figure prominently in ensembles led by Anthony Braxton and Rob Mazurek, as well as leading her own groups. However, on Intergalactic Beings it is her compositional strength which takes centre stage.

For this recording (captured live April 30, 2010, at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago) the Black Earth Ensemble's ranks are swollen to ten, the only personnel changes from the first Xenogenesis suite are the addition of Renée Baker on violin (from Mitchell's Black Earth Strings), and Jeff Parker on guitar replacing Justin Dillard (piano). In contrast to the positivity usually associated with her writing for the  BEE, Xenogenesis II deals with some bleak subject matter, often utilising dark and brooding sonance to frame the tumult of the story. The resulting suite is almost Third Stream, albeit with the incongruous palette of a post-Cageian sound world, rather than Schuller's sweeter conception. Mitchell's command of instrumental voices at times feels like Gil Evans twisted by pernicious forces, although tempered by a sense of hope and wonder. The recording comes with supporting text detailing the events portrayed, and whilst this is illuminating to the listener it is by no means required reading. The music stands on its own merit, the words providing further context from which to consider the suite, rather than a crutch required to support it.

Whilst much of the piece is through composed, there are areas within its structure for group improvisation, although within a predetermined sonic framework. When the occasional solo does occur, such is the strength of the compositional narrative that the lead voice sounds like an extension of the narration, rather than purely that of an individual. Clearly the long standing musical relationships Mitchell has with each musician ensures that their voices are ideally suited to her compositional style (it isn't a stretch to suggest that passages have been conceived with that particular musician in mind, rather than just their instrument), and in turn an awareness of the aims of the composer is readily apparent in the suite's more improvised areas, although individual brilliance is always afforded its place. Throughout the instrumental colouring is as central to telling the story as Mankwe Ndosi's often wordless vocalese, careful combinations and interplay rendering the emotional complexities of the subject matter through the creaking of a bass clarinet, rummaging percussion or ring modulated guitar. Mitchell's writing for  strings is particularly affecting (she began life as a viola player), and her use of interconnecting themes and instruments brings the cinematic best from the ensemble.

Whilst Mitchell's Xenogenesis works utilise ominous overtones which are not a facet of other BEE recordings, there is nonetheless an adherence to the idealogical foundations of the group. An alternative perspective of 'Mother Earth' is offered, holding a mirror to the ruinous potential of a dystopia future we appear to be walking blindly toward (a concept common to much science fiction writing). However, it is the sense of wonder and the resilience of the protagonist which best realises the BEE ideas of positivity. In the engaging musicality of this lovingly rendered composition there is much to "inspire the human spirit with thought-provoking beauty."

Nicole Mitchell: flute, composition 
Mankwe Ndosi: vocals
David Boykin: tenor sax, bass clarinet
David Young: trumpet, sralai thom
Renée Baker: violin
Tomeka Reid: cello
Jeff Parker: electric guitar
Joshua Abrams: bass
Avreeayl Ra: percussion
Marcus Evans: drumset 




Available from Instantjazz.

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Agustí Fernández & Zlatko Kaučič – Sonic Party (Not Two, 2014) ***½

By Dan Sorrells

Sonic Party continues Not Two’s recent documentation of Slovenian percussionist Zlatko Kaučič, this time in a duo with the formidable Agustí Fernández. Kaučič has been an established presence throughout Europe since the 70s, though his recorded output has really only picked up in the last decade or so. This is a happy development: Kaučič is a wildly creative player with an nearly endless array of clicks and dings and patters. On Sonic Party his rapid articulation—at times not unlike drummers such as Paul Lytton or Raymond Strid—is well-matched against Fernández’s frantic stream of ideas.

The album opens with two pieces of traditional (for lack of a better word) free improvisation: blistering runs on the piano and flying hands and drumsticks. “Sonic Party” steadily accelerates until it’s difficult to believe Fernández’s fingers will stay attached to his body. At its boiling peak, it levels off into a expanse of ringing notes, which eventually dwindle to silence. What’s never lost on Sonic Party is a gleaming clarity, no matter how much steam it picks up.

But for all the clattering, roiling pieces of improvisation, the duo forms the strongest bond when the pace is slowed down and Fernández enters the interior of the piano. On “Lonci” and “Mondze,” his preparations and experimentation with dampening and stretching the piano strings bring him much closer to Kaučič’s sonic wheelhouse, and the two blend into a single sound source, one that eventually builds into a thundering, frightening ambience that threatens to overwhelm the senses.

“Sirob” begins with a long Fernández solo that swoops and circles around an insistent dance of two notes. He’s soon focused on a cluster of high notes, which sound wistful and serene after the preceding tumult. But when Kaučič finally enters, the tone changes dramatically: suddenly what’s conveyed isn’t tranquility, but great tension. It’s a remarkable lesson in context and the ways small musical decisions can powerfully redirect a performance. “Free Nest” is yet another reminder of the force Fernández can generate with his piano: like a crushing vacuum, he can suck all the air out of the room. The piece ends abruptly in full crescendo, and a few people chuckle nervously in the audience, breathless and overwhelmed.

“The Hug” closes the album with an intense workout in the lower octaves of the piano, like arms wrapped around you that are slowly squeezing tighter and tighter. Eventually the grip loosens—it was all in good fun!—and the performance ends with faint cymbals and the soft clicking of keys, the piano strings no longer making a sound. It’s a nice encapsulation of what Sonic Party represents as a whole: a virtuoso stroll through the halls of improvisational history, from the most raucous free jazz to the lightest of reductionist touches.

Available from Instantjazz.

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Ches Smith and These Arches - International Hoohah (For Tune, 2014) ****

By Paul Acquaro

Ches Smith's These Arches has released a live recording of a 2012 appearance that is more than just a document of a great gig by his all-star These Arches group, it also contains new music specifically composed for the Warsaw show that comprises International Hoohah.

Recorded after the group’s debut Finally Out of My Hands (which was my very first review on this blog, so long ago), but before 2013’s fantastic ‘Hammered’, the songs already feel more fleshed out, like the ‘Finally Out of My Hands’ theme, which starts with the familiar elliptical melody from only to smash into a distorted wall of chord. Another highlight is ‘Anxiety Disorder’, a song that has shown up in several incarnations, but kicks off this recording with some bite.

The standout track amongst standout tracks is the title track, ‘International Hoohah', which begins with a somehow familiar syncopated figure that hinges on the interplay between Andrea Parkin's accordion and Smith’s drumming. As it builds in intensity, the energy of the track spirals outward spawning an exciting collection of driving solos. Then again, can you really expect not to be floored by the tandem sax work of Tim Berne and Tony Malaby, mixing it up with the musical prowess of Halvorson? In between these powerful moments, ‘One Long Minute’ harnesses a different type of energy, perhaps still charged by electricity of the preceding numbers, the group delves into an exploration of tones and textures.

International Hoohah is an excellent album, but most of all, this nicely recorded live date documents the group’s growth as an improvising unit, exploring both familiar melodies and introducing new material.

You can catch Ches Smith and These Arches on Oct 1st at the Stone in NYC during Smith’s residency week.

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The Whammies - Play the Music of Steve Lacy vol. 3: Live (Driff Records, 2014) ****

By Stefan Wood

The Whammies are a specialized jazz improvisational group. As the title of their albums obviously indicate, they are a group dedicated to the music and spirit of Steve Lacy, though they are not slavish to the compositions. In a way, they do for Lacy what Lacy himself did for Thelonious Monk: taking their love of jazz, of its wide ranging abilities and possibilities, integrating it into their own sensibilities, and presenting it to a new generation of listeners.

This is an all star group of musicians: Han Bennink, Jerrit Dijkstra, Pandelis Karayorgis, Jeb Bishop, Mary Oliver, and Jason Roebke. Like the other two volumes, the tracks comprise mostly of Lacy's compositions, allowing for one Monk composition. What is different here is that this is a live session, earlier this year in Padova, Italy. The music is well executed, tight, and jubilant. Bennink has a firm hand on the tiller over the rhythm section as they charge through the album's eight tracks, keeping everything lively and everyone on target.

"Bumpers" is the dynamic opener, revealing the group's large band sound, certainly larger than one would expect from a sextet. It is a bouncy, free form swinging track, having echoes of Monk's early works. "Snorts/Papa's Midnite Hop" is more aggressive, the group swinging their sounds round and round like a hammer throw, though instead of an inevitable release they pull back and switch gears, moving from swing to free bop. Dijkstra and Oliver really shine here, Dijkstra with a bold, alto tone, and Oliver with a precise and exacting violin sound that percolates on top of the others.

If Bennink has the tiller, Robeke has a firm hand on the bottom, his bass navigating through the torrents and shifting winds of the brass and violin. "Letter/Palermo-Orgosolo" is a moodier piece, alto and violin working together as they evoke a contemplative mood over Karayorgis' relaxed piano playing. "Stations" is a love letter to Monk, a vibrant, off key and jagged rhythm piece with Dijkstra fluidly leading the charge, alto more biting and angular than Charlie Rouse, but no less effective. "The Kiss" has Dijkstra utilizing the lyricon, an electronic wind instrument, and in this work it falls almost on the same register as the violin, as the two engage in some very abstract playing. Bishop's muted trombone and Karayorgis' accented piano playing lends to the minimalism of this piece. "Revolutionary Suicide" is solid hard free bop, with Karayorgis's piano being showcased, with a strong solo at the beginning then maintaining with the bass and drums a hard driving pace for Dijkstra and Bishop to play on top of. "Sublimation"(Tribute to Sun Ra) is a blast off into outer space, lyricon charting the stars, violin the ship, and the rest being the interplanetary music. It is the outstanding track on the album.

The album ends with "Hornin In," the lone Monk composition, with Bennink leading with a Blakey like drum solo, followed by Oliver and Karayoris with the theme, emphasis by Dijkstra and Bishop. Running just under an hour, and feeling much quicker than that, The Whammies' Play the Music of Steve Lacy vol 3:Live is a fun, well played romp that not only pays tribute to jazz masters past and but also is a celebration of what jazz can still offer today. Recommended.

Watch a recent concert date of the Whammies:

You can buy this album from Instantjazz. 

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Samo Salamon Bassless Quartet – 2 Altos (Steeplechase) ***½

By Chris Haines

This is a bassless quartet of guitar (Samo Salamon), 2 Alto Saxophones, (Loren Stillman, John O’Gallagher) and drums (Roberto Dani).  It might seem a bit obvious and irrelevant to say that the bass isn’t missed as an instrument within this sound, but in the context of the music it is well covered for, especially by Salamon’s guitar.  Needless to say that Salamon’s role within the group quite frequently is that of a supporting role, although there are solos and lead breaks where he stretches out or experiments with effects.  He is a wonderful guitarist and I enjoy hearing him play freely within a group setting, which he still finds the time to do within this music outside of the stricter supporting role.  This is particularly noticeable in the piece “Mr Cynical” where his guitar roams freely during a solo making the sounds that every great free jazz guitar solo should.

The album opens with solo guitar playing a cadenza-like interlude, but before any other music has been heard.  The horns then enter producing overlapping question and answer phrases in a linear piece with three clearly defined sections whilst the music gradually becomes a little freer in texture, but with Salamon providing a clear harmonic support.  The first couple of pieces seem a bit restrained at times and on first listen I wondered if this would set the tone for the whole album.  Thankfully though there is more room for manoeuvre in some of the other pieces, which allow the musicians to experiment a bit more and take a few more risks, as mentioned afore “Mr Cynical” being one of these pieces, and “Imperfections” another, where apart from the themes there is a loose improvised feel to them that allows them to breath more naturally.

At times, but not often, Salamon liberally uses some effects on his guitar sound with “Man of Mystery” being an obvious example, the sound being heavily processed to produce an electronic sounding object that appears as an introduction to the rest of piece which has a funky vibe to it.  These little moments do stand out and give the listener something different in contrast with the rest of the album.  “Flux of Silver” sees the guitar playing with delayed effects, which produces a pleasant and slightly minimalist repetitive accompaniment to the alto melody, which unfortunately doesn’t seem to develop into anything more than that.

It took a while to fully appreciate what is on offer here within the music of the album.  All I can say is that it creates for an interesting listen and the sound seems nicely balanced with some fine playing from all the musicians.  However, I do feel that at times some of the pieces do feel quite restrained and the most successful moments are when the music is much freer.  If you haven’t heard a Samo Salamon album yet, then I’m not sure this is the best place to start and I would recommend his album “Two Hours” which I feel is a much more consistent affair than “2 Altos”.

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Battle Trance - Palace of Wind (NNA Tapes, 2014) ****

By Paul Acquaro

The saxophone quartet Battle Trance is the vision of tenor saxophonist Travis Laplante. The catch here is that the quartet is one that features Laplante, Matthew Nelson, Jeremy Viner, and Patrick Breiner all on tenor. A unique concept, with a unique sound, Palace of Wind is a fascinating recording with a cover image and title that references the fantastical architecture of the Hawa Mahal in Jaipur.

The album begins with the saxes abuzz like a bunch of bees in a swarm. Pulsating, vibrating, and throbbing, their tones overwhelm the senses. Eventually, slowly emerging from the intense drone and circular breathing, a melodic line rises up exuding a certain calm. Then, suddenly the group breathes a collective breath, slowly, and the tone changes.

Floating seamlessly into the second track, the texture gives way to counter melodies and references to hymnal or somewhat medieval sounding harmonies. However, not for long, as growing dissonance increases the intensity of this slowly shifting musical mass. By the final third of the track, more individual motion appears as melodies rise and float above the already hovering background. Towards the end, the dynamics shift and the tension grows as the group builds back into the menacing buzz.

Palace of the Wind requires dedicated listening. It's subtle, with minute technical movements and slight tonal shifts, and it's brutal too, with broad dynamics and moments of dissonance and tension, and they all work together to shape the album's otherworldly and hypnotic sound.

 Take a listen:

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The Gate with Tim Dahl & Nate Wooley – Stench (Smeraldina-Rima, 2014) ***

By Dan Sorrells

As a recovering metalhead (it never fully goes away), The Gate peaks my interest. The trio travels in improvisational circles while toting the sorts of imagery and language found in the metal world. Previous albums had names like Vomit Dreams and Destruction of Darkness, and their website and merchandise is splattered with disemboweled corpses and inverted pentagrams.  While we’ve seen other improvisers dabbling in metal lately (e.g. Nilssen-Love/Marhaug/Pupillo’s You’re Next, Slobber Pup, Jon Irabagon’s album with Mick Barr, etc), The Gate seem committed to being all evil, all the time. 

The group’s earlier efforts certainly lived up to the “doom jazz” label. If you could write sludge riffs for a horn trio, the band—Dan Peck on tuba, Tom Blancharte on double bass, and Brian Osborne on drums—came as close as you can get, all while mixing in some free improvisation and creepy ambiance for good measure. But imagery and a steadfast devotion to heaviness are where most of Stench’s similarities to metal end. Stench finds the band bulked up to a fully electric quintet (with Tim Dahl’s additional bass and Nate Wooley’s amplified trumpet), and the sound invoked is more in the lineage of the darker noise groups of the late 90s and early 00s: Wolf Eyes, Skullflower, Yellow Swans, Aufgehoben—one might look even farther back and find the reckless spirit of Borbetomagus.

This means Stench is incredibly loud and incredibly noisy. “Bated Beast” takes no time at all exploding into a vortex of fuzzed-out everything and distorted caterwauling. I think if the title character in Lovecraft’s “The Music of Erich Zann” had been in a improvised noise group, this is exactly what his hyperdimensional, demon-repelling music would have sounded like. If you have the stomach for it, it’s bracing stuff.

The intensity carries across side A, but for a moment of respite at the end of “Induced Mutation” with gentle bells and the faintest of acoustic bass. Side B opens with “Axe of Death,” a dark, unstoppable wall of depressed, dragging sound. Eventually it breaks down, bleeding into eerie feedback and distorted bass sawing that almost sounds like backwards Satanic voices (if you’re disposed to hear that sort of thing). 

In a way, Stench embodies a strain of aural nihilism that most metal bands should be jealous of. There’s no neat chord progressions or blast beats or perfectly rhythmic tremolo picking. Convention is simply suffocated in its relentless, unbounded force. Stench closes with “Swögen,” which, with its sounds of drifting buoys and foghorns, brings to mind the title of a Wolf Eyes track: “Dead in a Boat.” As the improvisation picks up speed, it morphs into something even harder to describe—like slow motion Jew’s harp or a malfunctioning carnival ride. It’s decidedly less evil than the preceding pieces, though it still rests comfortably within the bleak, uncanny realm that’s just on the other side of The Gate.

Say a prayer for deliverance and then listen on Bandcamp:

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Jonas Kullhammar - Basement Sessions Volume 3: The Ljubljana Tapes (Clean Feed, 2014) ****½

By Stefan Wood

Recorded in 2013, Jonas Kullhammar's "Basement Sessions volume 3: The Ljubljana Tapes" is a live concert, featuring Kullhammar, Jorgen Mathisen on tenor, Torbjorn Zettberg on bass, and Espen Aalberg on drums.

"Basement," composed by Mathisen, is a high energy track that gets everyone hitting on all cylinders, Aalberg and Zettberg providing a solid, toe tapping hard bop rhythm, with Kullhammar and Mathisen synchronizing the lead. It is very spiritual, and evokes mid 60's Coltrane. "Allting kan ga itu" is a Kullhammar tune, very Dolphy esque, the saxophones going up and down the keys, before moving into a Zombies "Time of the Season" rhythm with saxes playfully on top of the beat. "Master of What" is a more contemplative, slightly somber tune by Zettberg, with the group establishing a theme, then Kullhammar or Mathisen alternating solos, each doing variations of the theme, then playing together. "Fresk Baglaens" is a funky hard bop tune, Zettberg providing a deep bottom with the bass, a sax keeping the rhythm while the other does a free improv solo. Toe tapping ear candy goodness, with a nice drum solo by Aalberg. "Rough 2" has that old Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers swagger, a medium tempo, low key swing that, once the theme is established, passes off to long stretching solos by each horn player, then back to the theme. Very old school, yet refreshing. The album ends with "Sekar Jepun," a low key mood piece that again evoke's Coltrane, spiritual yet somber.

Kullhammar's group has really taken the music from the past and made it contemporary, evoking, yet never imitating. Their own personal cultural heritage, as well as incorporating modern improvisation esthetics, have helped to create their own sound. One surprising thing about this album is how short it is -- less than 43 minutes. That may be a good thing. It does leave you wanting for more -- but that problem is solved by going back to the other two volumes in this series. Another fine effort by this group.

You can buy this album from Instantjazz. 

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Kenny Wheeler (14 January, 1930 – 18 September, 2014)

By Martin Schray

We have just read the sad news that the great trumpeter and flugelhornist Kenny Wheeler has died. 

Mr. Wheeler was born in Toronto and after studying harmony and trumpet at the Royal Conservatory in Toronto in the early 1950s, he went to London. There he became a founding member of the new wave of British free jazz in the 1960s, when he joined the Spontaneous Music Ensemble where he met people like John Stevens, Derek Bailey, Tony Oxley and Evan Parker. He later worked with the experimental composer and saxophonist Anthony Braxton, Alexander von Schlippenbach’s Globe Unity Orchestra, the United Jazz and Rock Ensemble and was also part of Azimuth, a trio with Norma Winstone and John Taylor. 

Wheeler was a very modest, even shy man who will always be remembered for his warm and lyrical sound as well as for his big band compositions.  He played on seminal albums like SME’s Karyobin (Island) and So What Do You Think (Tangent) and also released a lot of marvelous albums as a leader like Gnu High (ECM). My personal favorites have always been Angel Song (ECM), his drummerless quartet with Lee Konitz, Bill Frisell and Dave Holland, his composition Ana for Alex von Schlippenbach’s Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra (also released on ECM) and his collaborations with David Sylvian (Nostalgia is one of my all-time-favorite pop songs).

Wheeler died after a short period of frail health at a nursing home in London on 18 September 2014.  His death is a terrible loss.

Listen to one of his compositions and hear Norma Winstone and Evan Parker talk about him here:

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