Marquis Hill - New Gospel Revisited

March 15, 2022

Label: Edition Records, 2022

Personnel - Marquis Hill: trumpet; Walter Smith III: tenor saxophone; Joel Ross: vibraphone; James Francies: keyboards; Harish Raghavan: bass; Kendrick Scott: drums.

Chicago-born trumpeter and composer Marquis Hill showcases his spectacular new sextet in a particularly special session captured live at Constellation in Chicago. I say special because New Gospel Revisited is a mature reinterpretation of tunes from his self-released debut album from 2011. Interspersed with those cuts are solo discourses, one by each musician.

This sought-after trumpet player has definitely something new to say and after a wonderful “Intro”, he launches into “Law & Order”, here remodeled with an enchanting piano spell, robust bass plucks, and delicious solos from five of the six musicians involved (the drummer Kendrick Scott is the exception), starting with the dynamic range and advanced articulation of the bandleader.

“The Believer” makes for a spellbinding narrative with a gleeful, comforting embrace of cool melody and soulful harmony. Vibist Joel Ross and pianist James Francies first engage in an exciting interlocution, and then it’s the tenor saxophonist Walter Smith III who delights with a thrilling statement. Whereas “New Gospel” blends boundaries with elegance, creating an opportunity for bassist Harish Raghavan to bring his rhythmic discernment to the fore, “Autumn” is a polished melodic standout, malleable, lovable, and molded with both sympathetic groove and spiritual charm.

Mounted with a deeply personal set of timbres, “A Portrait of Fola” emerges as a grittier, edgier post-bop tour de force. Let yourself be marveled by a jaw-dropping vibraphone solo with highly responsive piano interaction, and razor-sharp saxophone phrases over muscular bass work and effervescent swing style drumming. No less warm, “The Thump” is surprising in the details and catchy in the way it separates sections - a polyrhythmic A against a sunny, breezy B, where the group sounds harmonious.

Extraordinary, fresh energy stems from the material included in this thoroughly enjoyable recording where six performers play at their peaks. With a variety of moods and rhythmic scenarios generating a gamut of emotion, this is an assured pick for 2022.

Favorite Tracks:
02 - Law & Order ► 04 - The Believer ► 08 - Autumn

Marquis Hill - Love Tape

November 26, 2019

Label: Black Unlimited Music Group, 2019

Personnel - Marquis Hill: flugelhorn; Mike King: piano, keyboards, Fender Rhodes; Junius Paul: electric bass; Marcus Gilmore: drums + special guests Christie Dashiell: vocals; Josh Johnson: alto saxophone.

Since releasing his debut album in 2011, Chicago trumpeter/composer Marquis Hill undoubtedly established his own thing, fusing elements of jazz, hip-hop, funk, soul, and R&B. The follow-up to Meditation Tape is called Love Tape, his 8th groove-centered studio album, a vehicle to spread a strong message with the assistance of Michael King on piano and keyboards, Junius Paul on bass, and Marcus Gilmore on drums. The idea consisted in culling excerpts from black women’s interviews (Eartha Kitt, Phylicia Rashad and Abbey Lincoln are some of the voices heard) on the theme of self-love and set them against ambient layered sounds with a soul jazzy vibe and looped soundscapes.

Hill strengthens this positive message throughout, but cools down most of the exploratory musical instincts that characterize him by keeping the same vaporous chill-out vibes from start to finish. Regardless the soulful bass inflations and inventive beat that compose its lower layers, this music feels predictable and somewhat quiescent.

Under the spell of a boom tap beat and a trippy ambient, “Roy’s Intro” opens the record with the illuminated words of late trumpeter Roy Hargrove, who states: ‘the whole reason why I play is for God. I’m in service’.

“Won’t You Celebrate With Me?” places a simple riff at the center of a relaxing narrative anchored in a hip-hop rhythm. The melody, frequently dubbed and wrapped in effect, are further exalted by Hill during his solo. The process is repeated on “To You I Promise”, which, flowing in loop, rests on a groovy melodicism drawn from the classic-era R&B. Somehow, the latter seemed a contrafact of Bobby Brown’s hit “Every Little Step”, yet set at a slower speed. Also, the synth-infused “I Believe In Love” places polyphony on top of a smooth, low-key tapestry, whereas “Beautiful Us” adds a generous dash of smooth funk through the bass guitar lines while proving Hill’s ability to show tenderness in his playing.

Guest altoist Josh Johnson displays his evolved rhythmic language on the trippy “A New Life”, exploring improvisation in an immediate, straightforward way. During his workout, he has the company of Hill’s tranquil fills running in the background, as well as the gentle percussive slaps provided by Gilmore. The second guest to appear on the album is singer Christie Dashiell, whose vocal certitude fit perfectly on the neo-soul offering of “Wednesday Love”, which comes peppered with a mesmeric odd beat.

Despite Hill’s tremendous gifts for melody and tender ambiences, Love Tape failed to surprise. In opposition to the powerful spoken word, the very few acrobatic moves on the album weren’t enough to make me want to revisit it. Notwithstanding, it . might work for listeners in need of tension-free moments.

Favorite Tracks:
03 - Won’t You Celebrate With Me? ► 06 - I Believe In Love ► 08 - A New Life

Marquis Hill, Jeff Parker, Joachim Florent, Denis Fournier - Escape Lane

June 22, 2017

Label/Year: The Bridge Sessions, 2017

Lineup – Marquis Hill: trumpet; Jeff Parker: guitar; Joachim Florent: bass; Denis Fournier: drums.

Escape Lane is an avant-garde jazz record and quartet that feels cohesive regardless the distinct backgrounds and styles of its members.

Trumpeter Marquis Hill shows an inclination for groundbreaking sounds, feeling comfortable in playing over inventive rhythms as he explores fresh musical concepts. In his latest works as a leader, Hill has been teaming up with altoist Christopher McBride and the quirky drummer Makaya McCraven, both longtime collaborators.

Creative guitarist Jeff Parker, a member of the indie rock band Tortoise since 1998, loves to electrify the air around him with chops that aggregate free improvisation, avant-jazz, and stylish art-rock. As a sideman, he teamed up with Fred Anderson, Joshua Redman, Brian Blade, and Scott Amendola.

Not so prolific in terms of recordings, Belgian Joachim Florent studied classical and jazz bass, while the active French percussionist Denis Fournier has embraced several styles in a career that spans almost five decades.

The contrapuntal title track gives an idea of the record’s mood, creating a sensation of dissonance through the polyphonic lines poured out by Hill and Parker. The latter, setting off on an individual exploration, holds the blues and the alternative rock as tools. Hill returns afterward, well backed by the impenetrable foundation created by the rhythm section, to wrap up with an interchange of solicitude and nonchalance.

Entering in a bubbly sphere of bliss, the quartet shows an extreme affinity for balladry on “Le Sel De La Situacion”. In an early phase, Hill’s thoughtful dissertations occupy the center of a song whose placidity is enhanced by Fournier's lenient brushwork and cymbal scratches and Florent's unaccompanied final narrative.

“Lever de Soleil Au Loin Sur La Lac Agité” is 21 minutes long and serves as a showcase for the quartet’s textural ambiances, from airy to paradoxical to groovy. There are many opportunities for individual flights, and Parker, now and then, exhibits a pleasurable folk-jazz disposition to remodel a usually abstract modus operandi. After probing enigmatic paths, one after another, under the rhythmic conduction of Fournier, the tune initiates a swinging motion that serves Hill's motivic efficiency, before decelerating toward a reflective state of limbo.

Introduced by chimes and guitar harmonics, “4800 S. Lake Park” ekes out poetic drifts declaimed by Hill, having Florent’s bowed bass underneath. Similar meditative tones and ruminations build “Une Petetite Fille Danse Asisse” where the trumpeter straddles Coltrane’s exultations and Miles’ cool vibes.

The title “Roughed Grooved Surface” is sufficiently transparent to let us have an idea about its mood. Fournier’s hyperactive drumming and the eerie vibes invented by Parker hang together. The guitarist also uses chromaticism and strident, rapid-fire strokes to respond to Hill’s intercalation of high-pitched blows and ascendant/descendant movements.

Wielding a keen sense of perception, these four explorers create unorthodox layers of sound to be stacked up and become strangely appealing.