Russell Fortunato Project - Passages from the Vault Vol. I

Label: Self released, 2024

Personnel - John Aruda: tenor saxophone; Christophe Bilodeau: piano; Russell Fortunato: bass; Michael Aiello: drums.

Bassist, composer, and bandleader Russell Fortunato discloses previously unreleased material recorded with his flagship project - featuring saxophonist John Aruda, pianist Christophe Bilodeau, and drummer Michael Aiello - in the ‘90s and ‘00s and adds a solo bass track from 2022.

The group launches the set with Coltrane’s “Tunji”, firmly embedded in the sounds of modal jazz and spiritual post-bop. Here, we can savor an intense, tonally-nuanced atmosphere with Aruda in command, as well as some nice deconstruction from Bilodeau, who avoids McCoy Tyner’s mannerisms. “Smart Lava”, from 2009, unfolds with a stop-start melodic outline set against Aiello’s continuous rambunctious drumming. Then, it melts into a swinging jazz plasticity, serving the articulated diction of Aruda, who definitely knows how to make a solo interesting.

“The Matador” and “Two By Four” emerged in 2005. The former affixes a 14-beat cycle groove on the bass, with the piano haloing around the tapestry weaved by bass and drums; the latter swings hard in a headlong rhythmic sprint that nearly shapes as a freebop exercise. Also from that year is the closing piece, “Enchanted (for Pamela)”, a gentle sonic poem that Russell penned for his wife, narrated with lustrous-toned saxophone reflectiveness.

Fortunato also showcases nimble bass contortions in his 2022 solo exploration “The Practicing Nomad”, which complements the quartet tracks with a different perspective. Although not as strong as his previous outings and occasionally grappling with some sound discrepancies, Passages From the Vault Vol. I keeps an attractive energy throughout.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Tunji ► 02 - Smart Lava ► 06 - The Practicing Nomad

The Russell Fortunato Project - Playing

Label: Self released, 2023

Personnel - John Aruda: tenor saxophone; Christophe Bilodeau: piano; Russell Fortunato: bass; Luther Gray: drums.

Boston-based bassist Russell Fortunato is probably unknown to many jazz surfers, but his project - featuring saxophonist John Aruda, pianist Christophe Bilodeau and new added drummer Luther Gray - deserves attention as its bright, well-balanced sound takes us to the realms of John Coltrane, Michael Brecker, Jerry Bergonzi, and Bob Mintzer. Their new album, Playing, comprises 11 cuts.

The haunting “Last For Now” and the congenial “Rugby” are absolute highlights, excavating harmonies and stitching them with melodies and loose-limbed grooves that swing as comfortably as they are convenient. The spare piano accompaniment generates space for expeditious bursts of saxophone delivered by Aruda, while the pavement is made unfaltering by arresting hi-hat and snare demarcations and schematized bass lines.

As my second choices, I point out “Stratosphere”, a rubato meditation; and the opener “Dance of the Temptress”, a post-bop inflection that folks like Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter and Tony Williams would certainly love to play.

The rhythm team is constantly locked in, but it’s Aruda who predominantly steals the show with in-and-out strokes of genius. He’s pretty active on “Easy Jam”, whose ecstasy takes us to the same post-bop spirit that swings and allures; “Release”, a blues that doesn’t shy away from Coltranean elements; and “Stickball”, whose shinny hard-bop tendency is conceived by the thematic sax/piano melody, and where the bandleader delivers a communicative solo.

Moving in a particular jazz aesthetics, Fortunato and his associates fully articulate their sonic palette, going from number to number with technical facility.

Favorite Tracks:
02 - Last For Now ► 03 - Rugby ► 04 - Stratosphere

Flash Reviews - I Don't Hear Nothin But the Blues / Tiffany Goode / Russell Fortunato Project

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IRABAGON’S I DON’T HEAR NOTHIN’ BUT THE BLUES VOL. 3 (Irabbagast, 2020)

Personnel - Jon Irabagon: tenor saxophone; Mick Barr: guitar; Ava Mendoza: guitar; Mike Pride: drums.

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The project I Didn’t Hear Nothing But the Blues, originally conceived as a duo by saxophonist Jon Irabagon and drummer Mike Pride, was progressively extended to trio and quartet formats on their subsequent editions. The third volume - Anatomical Snuffbox - features the twosome alongside boisterous guitarists Ava Mendoza and Mick Barr for a cathartic sonic mayhem that might sound atrocious for a day of headache, but liberating when you’re in those energy-bursting states that make you feel alive. Dedicated to Dutch bandleader Willem Breuker, this is a wild, unstoppable, 47-minute stretch of hyperactive activities walled in by a headstrong noisy envelope. In the course of swaggering cadences and circular trajectories of free improv, we hear the insurgent slaps, pops and howls poured out of Irabagon’s tenor, as well as Pride’s thumping percussion in prevalent disarray. The guitarists, while advocating a deliberate disharmony, help keeping the music on the edge. You can test your limits of noise endurance with this unrestrained extravagance meant for unshakable free jazzers. [B]

TIFFANY GOODE - TODAY WAS A GOODE DAY (Self released, 2020)

Personnel - Tiffany Goode: trumpet;  Planet Vness: keys.

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 This record sonically depicts a day in the life of Richmond-born, Atlanta-based trumpeter/composer Tiffany Goode. With the jazz at the center, Ms. Goode invites us to other territories she explores with effortless spontaneity such as hip-hop, smooth funk and R&B. Whereas “Goode Morning” works as a motivator, offering layers of trumpet over a snare-driven rhythm, “Catch the Sun” has a nice, breezy flow with relaxing trumpet melodies crossing the harmonic roads paved by synth-generated wah-wah and percussion. The tune is about catching dreams. Both “Forward Movement” and “Movement One” feature Atlanta keyboardist Planet Vness, with the former piece flowing in three, and the latter inviting us to a chilled out yet confident atmosphere. It’s simple cool jazz washed by calm sonic waves. Far more produced are the hip-hop numbers, “Do It For a Dollar” and “Song 4 Jon”, where deep, booming beats mix with sedative, trance-like jazz lines. The title track also brings some glee to the table with a dash of funk. Although combining different styles and moods, the connection between the concise songs is evident. [B]

THE RUSSELL FORTUNATO PROJECT - 25 YEAR ANNIVERSARY (Self released, 2020)

Personnel - John Aruda: saxophone, ocarina, flutes, voice;  Christophe Bilodeau: piano, flute, voice, percussion; Russell Fortunato: bass, voice; Michael Aiello: drums, percussion; Chris Anzalone: percussion, penny whistle.

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The Boston project led by bassist Russell Fortunato celebrates 25 years with a record where they fluctuate between sound worlds and explore their edges.
Fortunato’s “Resting For Wrens” boasts a propulsive, epic theme later transfigured into a smoothly swinging tapestry for the saxophone solo. Aruda intertwines hard-bop and post-bop vocabularies with pragmatism, and there’s also a persuasive piano discourse as well. Substantiating this uncompromising post-bop affinity with some crossover appeal, Bilodeau’s “The Beginning and the End” flows at a 3/4 tempo, while the collective improvisations “Tale of Gwoh” and “Lost in Tibet” get closer to the percussive avant-garde craft of The Art Ensemble of Chicago. The former piece is populated by flutes and extricate bass lines; the latter, by a mysterious droning eloquence and vocals.
The grey atmosphere of “Lost But Not Forgotten” relies on elegiac melody-laden hooks, displaying a piano stretch over a bass pedal, and a brief dialogue between sax and piano over talkative snare drum routines. By contrast, the hummable “Regression” is based on a cyclic harmonic movement and ends somewhat abruptly with drums. An enjoyable ride. [B+]