Label: Out of Your Head Records, 2024
Personnel - Alfredo Colón: alto saxophone; Lex Korton: piano; Steve Williams: double bass; Connor Parks: drums.
For what we hear in this remarkable debut album, it’s clear that Dominican-American saxophonist and composer Alfredo Colón has a bright future ahead. As a sideman, he gained some notoriety working with saxophonist Henry Threadgill on the latter’s album The Other One (Pi, 2023) and joining bassist William Parker in a couple of concerts, including an upcoming Vision Festival performance on June 18th.
The emotional quotient of Blood Burden is high, as Colón and his skilled quartet mates give a tremendous punch to the monotony with music that feels refreshingly focused and modern. Inspired by family and its intergenerational traumas, the album serves as a meditation between Dominican folklore and Catholic imagery and ethos.
“V.M.C.S.” opens the album with jaw-dropping alacrity, utilizing complex meter in the process without sacrificing fluidity. The piece, dedicated to Colón’s older brother Vladimir, evokes the spirit of their visits to NYC museums during childhood, climaxing in a blistering saxophone solo delivered with passion and authority. Pianist Lex Korton follows suit, dishing out a sleek, streamlined piano statement.
“Our Simplest Office Clerk” explores the balladic side of the composer, featuring polyrhythmic currents and sophisticated pianism at the fore. The piece then explodes in spontaneous color with a tumultuous saxophone clamor, occasionally adorned with multiphonics. The saxist can sound unabashedly lyrical one minute, carrying a plaintive edge, and ferociously wild the next. Regardless, a keen sense of structure prevails throughout the album.
Dedicated to his mother, “Santo” is elegantly propelled by the scintillating brushwork of drummer Connor Parks, conveying a strange enchantment that sometimes recalls Threadgill’s layered ventures. “Grinning’ in Your Face” is the sole non-original composition on the album. Penned by the Delta blues singer Son House, this 1965 piece channels the modal patterns and spiritual practices of John Coltrane and Albert Ayler with plenty of outside maneuvers. In turn, “Our Armor” relies on robust playing anchored by strong emotion and grit, with Korton’s nimble sweeping over the keyboard creating harp-like waves. He also leaps with obsessive moves and slides chromatically with purpose.
Blood Burden is a safe bet for those who like navigate uncommon waters. Colón arrives with plenty of promise but already shows substantial achievement.
Favorite Tracks:
01 - V.M.C.S. ► 05 - Grinning’ in Your Face ► 06 - Our Armor