L’Étau: Choses Clandestines (Disques Bloc Thyristors, 2014) *****

By Martin Schray

After having released Brigantin’s La Fièvre De L’Indépendance Jean-Noël Cognard (drums and percussion), the man behind Disques Bloc Thyristors, invited Great Britain’s top notch musicians Keith Tippet (piano) and Paul Rogers (bass), who have known each other for a very long time, and Luxembourgian free jazz legend Michel Pilz (bass clarinet), with whom he has worked on Binôme and Semelles De Fondation, for a studio session and a concert. The quartet turns out to be an ideal combination of personalities, almost like a band of brothers, a clash of two duos which seem to add up perfectly.  Cognard's unusual and risky approach of providing a rhythmic framework combined with Rogers' unique playing on his seven-stringed double bass is used by the two ardent and highly lyrical melodists Tippett and Pilz to explore unknown territories.

The studio album presents the musicians in all possible combinations (quartet, various trios, duos and solos), it is a journey into the acoustic possibilities of their instruments and the whole range this music has to offer – the harsh, energetic and iconoclastic sides as well as the  harmonic, intimate and spiritual ones. The studio part develops certain structures and themes which are readopted in the live performance. For instance, parts of “L’intrige devient plus sombre“ remind of the legendary David S. Ware Quartet with Matthew Shipp and William Parker and its central motif is used at the end of the first part of the live session again. Other highlights of the studio session are the exhilarating Pilz/Tippett duo on “Créer l’émotion puis la preserver”, Paul Rogers’ minimal figures which sound like outtakes of Steve Reich’s „Different Trains“, the Erik Satie moments on „Fondus dans l’arrière Plan“ and the quartet’s restrained energy  on  “Fondus dans l’arrière plan”.

In addition, the band even excels itself in the concert. “Une enseigne lumineuse faisant la réclame d’une revue musicale” and “Plancher authentique permettant de bien entendre les bruit des pas” display what is possible if musicians have the time to rehearse, to develop and to communicate with each other. Both performances present a rolling steam-engine – and Michel Pilz is the one who is responsible for switching on the turbo. Pilz, a European free jazz musician who has been on board since the beginning, adds wonderful colors to the improvisation with his bass clarinet, he yearns, he moans, he caresses the notes and pushes the others relentlessly – and the listeners are rewarded with real free jazz moments.
I have been listening to L‘Ètau’s Choses Clandestines for many weeks, it is an album that doesn’t let me go. However, for a long time I have had no idea how to write about it, how to live up to the music’s expectations, how to put into words what is so fascinating about this record. Recently  I thought that the music was so perfect, so immaculate, so coherent, that it actually doesn’t need any words, you just have to listen to it and feel it.

Choses Clandestines is a 4-LP-box limited to 300 copies only. The music on the first two discs was recorded in March 2013 at the Auditorium de Châtenay Malabry - studio Pierre Schaeffer. In addition to this session, a both sets of concert at Instants Chavirés are presented on the last two discs.

Listen to the quartet here:

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William Hooker - Heart Of The Sun (Engine, 2014) ***

By Stef 

When William Hooker, Roy Campbell and Jason Kao Hwang released "The Gift - Live At Sangha" in 2005, this album gave me a mesmerising experience of sheer beauty, like a door that opened into something unknown and hitherto unheard, offering me a new way of listening. Why? I would not be able to tell. A kind of magic happened. A strange and exhilirating experience.

On "Heart Of The Sun", recorded in 2013, we find Hooker back on drums, with the late Roy Campbell on trumpet, pocket trumpet and flute and now with David Soldier on violin, banjo and guitar. The three musicians play freely, with limited themes, prior plans or concepts, and again the music gells well at times, with Hooker a magnificent leader, offering depth and perspective to the playing, creating waves of thundering percussion and quiet polyrhythms when the soloists do their thing, and stronger even, he can create high volume drumming when the soloists are in a more contemplative mood, working strange contrasts into the music.

To hear Roy Campbell playing, is a real treat. He can give sudden soaring high phrases or move to growling darker tones, at times jazzy, or with Latin undertones or just being his inventive self.

After two track on violin, Soldier switches to banjo, changing the overall sound, Campbell uses his mutes and Hooker resorts to a more bluesy pulse. It is almost basic, raw, somewhat chaotic and imprecise, but that makes it also sound real and human, far removed from the polished sound of superficial feelings, it makes it sound what it should be sounding like.

On "For Leroy", Soldier switches to acoustic guitar, offering some Latin-sounding chords, including some shamanic singing, creating a very uneven performance, with the sound quality slowly degrading too. On "Rainwater", Campbell switches to flute, and Soldier back to violin, while Hooker unleashes again some heavy drumming full of raw energy of the somewhat hesitant soloists, who unexpectedly switch to a little folk dance tune.

It is a strange album, very varied in its musical approaches and sound, maybe a little too incoherent, and with changing levels of intensity and creativity. It is far from being at the same level of "Live At Sangha", and it's maybe the high expectations that I had from it, that make this album somewhat disappointing.

But then, if you like Roy Campbell, it's always a joy to listen to him play.


Available from Instantjazz and Bandcamp.

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Don Cherry - Live In Stockholm (Caprice, 2013) ***½

By Stef 

Some years ago, I wrote this review on Don Cherry tribute albums, but now we have access again to one of the great performances of the visionary artist.

The music on the double LP has not been previously released, and we can thank the label for releasing this great addition to Cherry's discography, although I think that some bootleg versions of this performance already circulated, although with less good quality, even if the sound quality here is not superb either.

The performances were recorded in Sweden, in the the Arbetarnas Bildningsförbund (abbreviated ABF and translated as Workers' Educational Association), which explains the titles "ABF Suite : Part 1" and "ABF Suite : Part 2". The band on these tracks consists of Cherry himself on pocket trumpet, flutes, piano, percussion and vocals, Maffy Falay on trumpet, flutes and percussion, Bernt Rosengren on tenor saxophone, flutes and percussion, Tommy Koverhult on tenor saxophone, flutes and percussion, Torbjörn Hultcrantz on bass, Leif Wennerström on drums. The performance dates from September 1968.

The third track was performed three years later in the Bucky Dome, at the Museum of Modern Art, and is called "Another Dome Session", split in two parts. Apart from Don Cherry and Maffy Falay, the band consists of Tommy Koverhult on sax, Rolf Olsson on bass, Okay Temiz on drums, accompanied by "children and visiting friends".

It is maybe this last element which made Don Cherry who he was. A true citizen of the world, he wanted to celebrate life and music in all its variety and spontaneous joy. Technical skill in this vision did not appear to be a prerequisite for good music, as long at this spontaneous celebration was part of it. Cherry's approach to music was obviously strongly influenced by Ornette Coleman, with whom he performed for many years in the famous quartet, but he took a different direction as a leader. Yes, like Coleman, he kept to the melody, or a sequence of melodies as the backbone for improvisations, instead of harmonic progressions and the more traditional theme-improv-theme structure. The few chore phrases were known and rehearsed by the musicians, but could be played at any time and in any sequence during the improvisations, bringing the band back together after sometimes wonderful excursions into world jazz territory, or equally often into meandering bifurcations of little interest or dynamics.

I leave it up to the listener to judge which is which, yet the end result is always fun, and it is really hard for me as a fan to be negative about this. It is such a joy to hear his music, and the all-inclusive approach, that even the lesser moments are taken without regret and even with feelings of generosity.

The album also gives a great perspective on how his music evolved over the years. The ABF suite is still close to the idea of his album "Complete Communion", released in 1966, with some of the themes of that album figuring as part of the suites. On the Dome performance, the playing is already beyond jazz, with lots of singing, flute playing, middele-eastern percussion, and strange evolutions of loose lack of activity, which can make us wonder what actually happened on stage at that moment, but then out of this quiet indecisiveness arises the most beautiful trumpet theme, one that will be repeated years later with Codona, ending again in a great warm blanket of common improvisation and singing.

Don Cherry was unique, for sure, a wonderful artist, someone whose music always projects great feelings, authentic feelings for humanity and life, a music that is both sacred and tribal, while at the same time trying to be accessible for all to listen to, and equally for all to join in, and play, and even dance on stage, or just at home, while listening.

This is not his best album, but fans of the artist should not miss this one, and it will in any case lift everyone's spirits. Guaranteed!

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Paal Nilssen-Love Large Unit-First Blow (PNL, 2014) ****½

By Ed Pettersen

I love this album.  It’s only two long songs (one 12 minutes and the other almost 9) but any time you listen to a record and it makes you smile, feel intrigued and challenges you is a good thing in my book.

Song 1 starts with a couple of blast from the Large Unit then enters immediately into squeals and digital disturbance for a minute or two before the Large Unit enters back in for real.  It’s very playful, almost sounds entirely improvised were it not for the tightness of the changes by the group together, and has a lot of dynamics.  It sure ain’t boring, that’s for certain.

Song 2 has more digital interference and tasteful sax squeals and improv but is no less fun than track 1.  It’s less bombastic than the first song and a lot more out there but very cool on its own.  It’s also less of a combined unit song but that didn’t inhibit my enjoyment of it one bit.  Norwegian artists get tagged with the “electronic free jazz” moniker often but when it’s used this well I don’t think of it as such.  I just hear it as a natural part of the composition and great music.

Mr. Love is a superb band leader and improviser and it’s hard to think of a drummer right now I’d rather listen to in the free jazz world.  He’s powerful, commanding but never overwhelming or ostentatious.  That he could take a complete seat back on the second track and let it happen outside the drums is a testament to his taste and restraint.

I originally wasn’t going to review it because I didn’t want to be tagged “the Norwegian guy” but I’m glad I did.  It’s enriched my musical palate and expanded my mind.  I also didn’t want to give it such a high rating since the last few reviews I’ve done were so high but this album demands it.  Highly recommended.

The Large Unit is:

• Jon Rune Strom-double bass, elecric bass
• Andreas Wildhagen-drums
• Paal Nilssen-Love-drums
• Mats Aleklint-trombone
• Christian Meas Svendsen-double bass, electric bass
• Laus Ellerhusen Holm-Alto saxophone, baritone saxophone
• Kasper Vaernes-altp saxophone
• Thomas Johansson-cornet
• Borre Molstad-tuba
• Ketil Gutvik-electric guitar
• Lasse Marhaug-electronics, turntable.

Available from Instantjazz. 

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Xiu Xiu - Nina (Graveface, 2013) ***½

By Stefan Wood

Xiu Xiu is a California group formed and led by Jamie Stewart. The band's music is experimental, incorporating rock, jazz, and punk elements. The album title Nina refers to the great singer Nina Simone, and the album is a tribute to as well as an interpretation of her music. Released in late 2013, it features an outstanding group of musicians - Tim Berne, Mary Halvorson, Tony Malaby, Ches Smith and Andrea Parkins.

While the song titles might be familiar to those who know Simone's music, here Xiu Xiu brings a very different approach. "You'd Be So Nice" opens the album with the free blowing brass of Tim Berne and Tony Malaby and the crushing drumwork by Smith, with Stewart's vocals barely a presence until halfway through the track. Not exactly the intimate standard that the song is known for.

The music ranges widely, sometimes like a Bertolt Brecht cabaret, as in "Where Can I Go" or "Don't Smoke in Bed". Stewart brings his voice to a hoarse whisper, creating a real sinister and creepy mood. Is he singing to entertain you or to possess you? He has an unusual voice -- evoking Simone's contralto voice and intimacy, but without the acidity. Think of Sterling Holloway (as Kaa the snake from the Disney animated film the "Jungle Book") singing in a Tom Waits or Scott Walker manner. "Pirate Jenny" starts from the same aesthetic but the interplay is more dynamic, his voice teaming with guitar, then guitar and drums, to electronics, to horns, to all.

One might ask how does this relate to Nina Simone, but it could be seen as deconstructive reinterpretations. There are many straightforward instances of Stewart being true to her spirit. He nails it on the excellent "The Other Woman," featuring Mary Halvorson's marvelous guitar playing (the duets with Stewart and Halvorson are highlights on the album), and "See Line Woman," a righteous track that everyone rocking, providing an infectious beat and a Led Zeppelin like ("Gallows Pole") feel. "Four Women" has Smith propelling the song forward with rolling thunder of drums, and the others moving along like a wave, gloriously aggressive, and Stewart riding on top.

Overall, Nina is an unusual but rewarding take on a classic American singer's oeuvre.

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Dave McDonnell Group – The Dragon and the Griffin (New Atlantis, 2014) ****

By Chris Haines

On his website Dave McDonnell describes this group as his “post-jazz unit”.  For me Post-Bop springs more readily to mind although personally I’m not sure about that as a term to reflect the totality of the music on offer here, even though it is generally used as a bit of a catch-all label.  There are some pieces that are heavily influenced by the virtuosity of the Bebop style, but there are also other pieces that are structured around repeated ostinato patterns, more free-form playing and a few short pieces with a completely contrasting colour.

The group is Dave McDonnell on saxophones, Chris Welcome on guitar, Joshua Adams on bass and Frank Rosaly on drums.  For starters I like the sound of McDonnell’s playing.  He has a smooth pure tone that is clearly underpinned by a good technique, which he stays in control of throughout the album.  That is not to say there isn’t feeling or expression in his playing but the quality of his sound is a consistent and pleasant factor across all the pieces he plays on.  The ever efficient Chris Welcome’s playing is strong on this album, fulfilling supporting roles to McDonnell’s lead lines as well as some strong virtuosic soloing of his own, which is a delight to hear.  The rhythm section of Rosaly and Adams form a tight unit that provides good support to the melodic/harmonic gymnastics of sax and guitar.

Some of the highlights of The Dragon and the Griffin include ‘Perch’ a Bebop fuelled piece, ‘Geranium’ with it’s much freer developmental playing and the three short pieces ‘In a Clearing 1, 2 & 3’ which are spread out over the album and are realised by Jason Adasiewicz on vibraphone and Tomeka Reid on cello.

The music on this album really swings and although not all of it would necessarily come under the Free Jazz banner it is well worth a listen as there is a lot on offer here to enjoy.

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Damian Allegretti, Erik Friedlander & Tony Malaby - Stoddard Place (2014) ****

By Paul Acquaro

Argentinian drummer Damian Allegretti, has put together an excellent album with free jazz stalwarts Erik Friedlander (cello) and Tony Malaby (sax). Recorded in New York, Stoddard Place pairs the delicate drumming of Allegretti with empathic and inventive playing from the cello and sax.

The group begins with the upbeat 'VI'. Malaby and Friedlander spar playfully over Allegretti's sensitive drumming. A repetitive vamp make up the core of this engaging track, and it builds from a delicate solo cello introduction into a vehicle for the group to dig into. Another highlight is the track 'Namaste', a lovely ballad that swells organically and features a slowly unfolding melody. The album also offers duo configurations, sax/drum, sax/cello and cello/drum improvisations that splitting up the more composed pieces and offering some other exciting musical ideas.

Stoddard Place is a thoughtful and earnest album, in which the delicate frameworks of the songs really showcase the imagination of the musicians. The trio connects well and it's a real treat to hear Malaby and Friedlander together. Allegretti's playing is always extremely supportive, never overpowering or obtrusive. Recommended listening!

Check it out:

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Danny Fox Trio - Wide Eyed (Hot Cup, 2014) ****

By Antonio Poscic

Wide Eyed by the Danny Fox Trio (hailing from NYC) turned out to be one of those delightful, rare surprises for me: an unexpectedly delicious record. When I first listened to this album, I had no particular expectations. I wasn’t acquainted with the work of any of the members and some of the short samples I had heard sounded somewhat unremarkable. This is why the experience of discovering this album’s numerous and wonderful layers was so great when I finally listened to it in full.

In this age where “constant” groups are hard to find and where collaborations are often one-offs, this trio is an exception. It is a band whose members spend a considerable amount of time working and playing together. This fact is clearly reflected in their music by providing a combination of relaxed playing, cohesiveness, and improvisational energy. It might feel like the Danny Fox Trio is taking the traditional notions tied to the jazz trio, deconstructing them, and combining all the resulting elements in a novel way. Like pieces of a well-known jigsaw puzzle put back together in a surprising and unconventional way. The described approach taken on Wide Eyed means that Danny Fox and his associates do not revolutionize the format of the jazz trio as much as they refine it, make it easily recognizable. Or, in other words, they make it their own. You can hear the musicians’ personalities imprinted in each played note, both in the tenacious and more restrained moments, whether providing a backdrop for the other players or while soloing. Make no mistake, the music on this release is carefully thought out, carried on by the almost perfect performances of all members of the trio. At the same time, there are influences from a variety of genres infused on this album and stylistic elements are exchanged often enough to make the whole endeavor simultaneously very catchy and gleeful, often euphonic. Some compositions even feel architected as chamber music pieces, which is not all that surprising given the backgrounds of the musicians. Pianist Danny Fox, bassist Chris van Voorst van Beest, and drummer Max Goldman are all experienced and well versed in a variety of genres, including classical music. The combination of chamber music and jazz can be tricky to perform successfully, but this kind of fusion works quite admirably on this record.

While it is hard not to see Danny Fox as the star here, it must be said that all the band members get ample space to prove their musicality and virtuosity. Fox’s style often sounds like an amalgamation of various pianists and piano playing techniques. His style sounds familiar, yet it is exquisitely innovative and fresh, sometimes almost romantic and tastefully grandiose. Controlled and soft on slower compositions, never overwhelming during more energetic passages. It is interesting to point out that I could see this material functioning as the foundation of a solo piano album. The other two members of the trio do not lag far behind Fox. The bass goes beyond the duties of providing rhythm and often serves as vessel of melodic progression. The drumming here is also very strong, with Max Goldman allowing himself to explore patterns not innate to jazz. Besides being a pianist of great technical ability, Fox proves to be a proficient composer as well. Wide Eyed features all original compositions, tailored to the strengths of the trio. The first part of the album, fronted by the introductory “Sterling” and its slowly evolving and mutating flow, the very interesting and tangled “Bonkers” and droning “Drone”, is more varied, energetic and of higher tempo when compared to the rather restrained and mellower second and final group of songs, with standouts being the title track “Wide Eyed” and its brooding mood and “Confederates” which sounds like an interpretation of a threatening march. All compositions are equally compelling and enjoyable, tied to strongly defined motifs and evolving themes, making the album a success when considered as a whole.

This is music that is hard not to recommend to… everyone, actually. Whether you are a fan of traditional jazz looking to explore something new or a seasoned, adventurous explorer of all the exciting facets of jazz, Wide Eyed contains aspects and sensibilities that should appeal to you. Thoroughly worth a listen!

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Gianni Gebbia: Le Zouave Jacob & Night Mapping

Le Zouave Jacob   (objet-a, 2014)  ***½
(Gianni Gebbia - alto saxophone & electronics , Mauro Gargano- contrabass & electronics , Dario De Filippo- percussions)

Night Mapping (objet-a, 2014)  ***½
(Gianni Gebbia- alto saxophone & cracklebox, Theresa Wong – cello)

By Hugo Truyens

Someone once said that we have to reverse the words 'abstract' and 'realistic' when it comes to painting.  It is the painting of the landscape we have to call abstract : it strips away aspects from a real scene. A Pollock on the other hand is the realistic painting.  There is nothing else but the painting.  I can see that and when I apply it to these two records of Gianni Gebbia, the Zouave Jacob is the abstract piece,  the cello meeting definitely the real piece.

During the Second Empire in France, an army musician called Jacob drew Parisian crowds by performing so-called miraculous cures. Not unlike present-day evangelists he went into a trance and used the “Fluidum of White Ghosts” to heal.  He seems to have used loud trombone improvisations and barrages of insults to cure the ailing. So when you call your record Le Zouave Jacob, there is a prior image.  Around this image the trio plays and what they come up with is something like a soundtrack to a non existing film (not unlike Shadows and Fog).  The trio mixes jazz, electronic soundscape, minimalism over a complex polyrhythmic background, staying low most of the time, except in the track called “Guérison”, where you cannot help but hear the loud trombone improvisations.  So this is the abstract record.

Night Mapping is what it is.  Music by two who tap into the never-ending stream and coax out of it a concentrated dialogue, listening, anticipating,  proceeding according to its inner logic, providing recognition, alienation and humour (through the use of the crackle box e. g.). You listen through it and when all is said and done (about half an hour, a good length) nothing has changed.  Which is nothing to be sneezed at.  Gebbia as a practicing zen Buddhist must know this story : Before Zen, mountains are mountains and rivers are rivers. During Zen, mountains are no longer mountains and rivers are no longer rivers. After Zen, mountains are mountains and rivers are rivers.

Couldn’t have stated it better . Nothing world shattering here but definitely worth the listen. 

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Matana Roberts, Sam Shalabi & Nicolas Caloia: Feldspar (Tour de Bras, 2014) ****

By Martin Schray

With her Coin Coin project Matana Roberts has become everybody’s darling, from papers like the New York Times or the Los Angeles Times to jazz magazines and radio programs, even to media beyond the jazz cosmos like the Rolling Stone, SPIN or pitchfork.com. Everyone is rightfully awestruck by “Gens de Couleur Libres” and “Mississippi Moonchile” (including us).

But apart from her longtime project Matana Roberts has always been involved in smaller groups - like her trio with Josh Abrams (b) and Chad Taylor (dr), her quartet with Taylor Ho Bynum (cornet), Thomson Kneeland (b) and Thomas Fujiwara (dr) or her band with Jeff Parker (g), Josh Abrams (b) and Frank Rosaly (dr) – all of them not as spectacular as Coin Coin but nevertheless absolutely interesting since Roberts concentrates more on improvisation while Coin Coin rather focuses on a compositional element.

For this album Roberts has formed a new trio with Canadian musicians Sam Shalabi (g) and Nicolas Caloia (b), both active members of Montreal’s prospering scene. Their “Feldspar” album is named after a group of minerals, the name feldspar derives from the German words Feld (field) and Spath (a rock that does not contain any ore) – like this formation does not have any drums.

The band mainly delves into harsh avant-garde idioms, sometimes the musicians seem to be alienated from each other, as if they would confirm an old prejudice against free jazz that the musicians only play for themselves. However, Roberts’ always keeps a strong element of melody present, in “Spinel” her sax lines are deeply rooted in folk blues melodies (and she does not deny Albert Ayler, Steve Lacy and Fred Anderson as main influences). In general bass and guitar provide edgy textures and colorful dots for Roberts’ discreet melodies, as if the three were painting a picture, the guitar providing the ground coat, the sax being responsible for the strokes of the brush and the bass for the dots (as in “Opal”).

Highlights of this album are the bookending tracks: On “Orpiment” Shalabi provides a Thurston-Moore-like guitar, Matana’s warm and gentle sax creeps into the track very shyly in front of the guitar feedback and Caloia’s bowed bass, she seems to be looking for a point of contact with bass and guitar. Only at the end the three instruments seem to entwine with each other, dancing madly, their limbs distorted.

The title track (the last one on this album) begins with bass and sax displaying a melancholic layout, while Shalabi’s atonal guitar is playing almost against the others, as if he wanted to disturb the dialogue - but Roberts and Caloia resist and answer back. It is a heavy, escalating dispute, at the end everybody seems to be exhausted from the fight in this long aftermath.

Listen to “Orpiment” here:

Available from Instantjazz.

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