Label: Trost Records, 2024
Personnel - Mats Gustafsson: tenor and soprano saxophone; Sten Sandell: piano; Raymond Strid: drums.
The North European trio Gush, featuring the expansive saxophonist Mats Gustafsson, adventurous pianist Sten Sandell, and thoughtful drummer Raymond Staid, releases a fantastic record, Afro Blue, containing a live performance that dates back to 1998 at Stockholm’s Fasching.
The bass-less trio creates electrifying frameworks in the first two tracks, drawn from the Behind the Chords series penned by Sandell. The pianist is essential to the sound that references the trio. “Behind the Chord V”, a 27-minute odyssey, comes to life with the curiosity and excitement of a harmonically rich piano construction. Gustafsson’s saxophone wanders about, opting for mysterious paths while exploring with passion, and the responsive rhythm section provokes rhythmic variations. The music reaches a feverous delirium before the piano becomes percussive, and then it’s Strid who embarks on an articulated drum talk, later joined by Gustafsson’s growling blows and meaty tones. Sandell contributes to an epic ending with his complex textural surfaces.
“Behind the Chords IV” is another looming track, with a digressive soprano saxophone creating trepidation as well as an interpolative piano using nuance for rhythmic stimulation. Strid introduces pulsation subtly, integrating timbres in the sonic fabric weaved by the pianist, who extemporizes in due course with oblique moves. The music advances explosively with jittery and cacophonous passages, leading to mindful percussive moments and a melodically supplicant and elliptical finale.
A magnetic reading of Mongo Santamaria’s “Afro Blue”, popularized by John Coltrane in the 1960s, exposes its modal possibilities as Sandell explores polyrhythmically, Gustafsson unleashes entrancing lines with spiritual substance, and Strid paves the way in fearful convulsion, taking the piece to ecstatic realms. The album concludes with a peaceful improvisation.
Afro Blue highlights Gustafsson and his associates as outstanding improvisers whose directional waves align with engaging foundations and unconfined melodies. The trio's performance demonstrates not only a profound understanding of what they need to do as individuals and group but also a deep connection and inventive spirit.
Favorite Tracks:
01 - Behind the Chords V ► 03 - Afro Blue