Label: Pi Recordings, 2021
Personnel - Matt Mitchell: piano; Kate Gentile: drums, percussion; Jon Irabagon: alto and soprano saxophones, Matt Nelson: tenor saxophone; Ben Gerstein: trombone; Davy Lazar: trumpet; Brandon Seabrook: guitar, banjo; Ava Mendoza: guitar; Kim Cass: bass, Mat Maneri: viola.
Snark Horse, the duo of pianist/keyboardist Matt Mitchell and drummer Kate Gentile, releases an epic 6 CD-box set that brims with astoundingly intricate rhythms and textures as well as plenty of freely improvised passages within a rigorous structural organization.
For this monumental opus composed of one-bar compositions and short electronic pieces, the twosome enlisted a collective of eight musicians who appear in various combinations across the album, ranging from duo to tentet (Snark Horsekestra). All these contributors, known for being constantly on the look for new experiences, have been playing with the duo since 2013.
It’s extremely hard to pick favorites from the extensive tracklist, but “Compartments/ ‘S Partial” threw me into its delightfully elliptical trajectories via saxophone/trombone interjections and explosive guitar maneuvers, all in a permanent musical connection and deep focus. Featuring a similar instrumentation and blooming with polyrhythmic wonder, “Igh/Dogmacile” dives deep into industriously mechanical motions. The great vibe of Mitchell’s “A Pouting Grimace” is reinforced here through the deft interplay between the pianist and the guitarist Brandon Seabrook. This piece is linked to “Greasy Puzzle”, a sort of mournful stirrer.
If “Trapezoids/Matching Tickles” opens with exciting drumming and features Jon Irabagon in absolute command of the altissimo register and extended techniques, then “Nudgelet”, with bassist Kim Cass aboard, probes prog-rock aesthetics with hints of electronica and lots of jazzy piano atop. Mitchell also jazzes up the fast paced “Glubz/Spelling Bad on Purpose”, where entrancing rhythms and glorious timbres are held down tight.
The fervent “Thing-Fact/Theoretical Muscle” has Irabagon and Gerstein producing lavishly with shaggy authority, whereas “Regular Falutin’” exudes a more exotic touch in the combination of Seabrook’s banjo with Mat Maneri’s viola over an entrancing 13/8 rhythm. The same pair operates in a different context alongside trumpeter Davy Lazar on “Mad Homonyms/Phex”.
You'll find unremitting odd meter everywhere. Hence, Gentile’s “F Tesselations/Chimeric Numbers” shows off the full Horsekestra grooving in five and seven, whereas “Mind Goggle/End of Something” develops in a slower nine, having Matt Nelson’s dark tenor timbres working as a perfect foil for Ava Mendoza’s atmospheric guitar.
Diversity is offered with the short electronic numbers, which include ritualistic paraphernalia (“Flock Adulation”), granular and glitchy vibes (“Pheromone Quiz”), spectral dissonance (“All Tall Ghosts”), and flickering, bloopy sounds (“Underblobb Sys”).
For all its ingenious conception and technical quality, this is essential listening for all modern music surfers whose waves range from microscopic precision to cosmic turbulence.
Grade A
Favorite Tracks:
04 (CD1) - A Pouting Grimace/Greasy Puzzle ► 01 (CD2) - Trapezoids/Matching Tickles ► 08 (CD3) - Glubz/Spelling Bad on Purpose ► 02 (CD4) - F Tesselations/Chimeric Numbers ► 05 (CD5) - Mad Homonyms/Phex