Label: Aut Records, 2024
Personnel - Achille Succi: bass clarinet, contrabass clarinet; Massimiliano Amatruda: piano; Joseph Circelli: guitar, effects, synth; Andrea Grillini: drums.
For their sophomore album, Circles 44, originally a trio of confident Italian vanguardists consisting of pianist Massimiliano Amatruda, guitarist Joseph Circelli, and drummer Andrea Grillini, expanded into a sonically combative quartet with the addition of adventurous clarinetist Achille Succi. The group's improvisatory prowess and rhythmic dexterity are showcased throughout an inspired set of music characterized by structured improvisation, staggering complexity, and dynamic intensities.
With no hesitation, the first two cuts - “Spiral Dance” and “In the Grip” - demonstrate the ensemble’s command of their craft with hyperbolic angles and stream-of-conscious layering. Upon flowing at a slow ternary pace - with chatty cross stick, dreamy piano, and low-key guitar - the Amatruda-penned “Spiral Dance” shifts toward an odd-metered tempo, sustaining captivating solos by Succi, always deep and rich in tone, and Grillini, who stirs up the energy before the thematic piano motif starts soaring above him. Circelli’s “In the Grip” kicks off with a compact drum solo before entering into prominent modalism - more Andrew Hill style than John Coltrane. The group intersperses quieter passages before setting foot in a dazzling 12-beat cycle groove that ends up in double tempo.
If “Gate” works like an electro-dance act, probing fragmentation via the syncopated strap beat and promoting exploratory dialogue, then “Circles” goes from an intriguing stillness to an investigative folk dance. In turn, Grillini’s “Linea (first approach)” strikes a balance between quiet minimalism and impulsive temperament. The album concludes with “A.A. 1942”, a noir excursion imbued with pensive tones and raw edges.
Creative jazz aficionados will find this album compelling. These four artists epitomize the quality of the intrepid Italian avant-jazz scene, making In the Grip a worthy addition to any jazz collection.
Favorite Tracks:
01 - Spiral Dance ► 02 - In the Grip ► 04 - Gate