Label: Astral Spirits, 2020
Personnel - Nate Lepine: tenor saxophone, flute; Greg Ward: alto saxophone; Nick Mazzarella: alto and soprano saxophones; Nick Broste: trombone; Jason Stein: bass clarinet; Rob Clearfield: piano, Wurlitzer; Matt Ulery: acoustic and electric basses; Quin Kirchner: drum set, percussion, kalimba, synth.
Chicago drummer Quin Kirchner shows off his multifaceted percussive style on The Shadows and the Light, a double album comprising original material and a gratifying selection of covers that pay tribute to his musical influences. Emphasizing rhythm, free improvisation and structure, the 15 tracks on the album are explored in different formats - from solo to septet - in the company of musicians that demonstrate heaps of potential in their playing.
“Shadow Intro” is a welcoming and animated percussive introduction to a beautiful journey. Kirchner crafts this one alone, aggregating Afro-samba pulsations and synth effects. These rhythmic flavors veer to Afro-Cuban on “Batá Chop”, where the bandleader, at the center of the rhythm, plays aesthetic attention to the surroundings created by bassist Matt Ulery, keyboardist Rob Clearfield (on Wurlitzer), and alto saxophonist Greg Ward. The latter, plays mostly by the 'rules', but intensifies the dance with outside expeditions that don’t last for long.
The bandleader is attracted to both fervently earnest and sensually exotic rhythms. In the former category we have “Rift”, a swinging avant-garde trio effort that pushes the tenor saxophonist Nate Lepine to the foreground, and Carla Bley’s “King Korn”, from which the trombone of Nick Broste erupts, evoking the spirit of Grachan Moncur III, as well as the perfervid bass clarinet of Jason Stein. Conversely, the sight of foreign landscapes is conjured on titles such as “Sahara”, a composition by Sun Ra Arkestra’s former member Phil Cohran, here featuring flute, bass clarinet and kalimba; “Planet Earth”, a mid-50's mainstream-meets-progressive piece by the venerated keyboardist Sun Ra; and “Jupiter Moon”, a Kirchner original that, after starting off as a multi-timbral saxophone constellation, embraces a keen 5/4 groove laid down in support of unisons, garnishing melodies, and concurrent improvisations.
The drummer is in charge of the transition that bridges “Star Clutter” - where five unaccompanied horns participate in a buzzing, ongoing activity - and “Moon Vision”, where the rhythm section digs into a hip-hop-ish groove.
Definitely a highlight, “At This Point in Time” salutes the late saxophonist Frank Foster, who penned it, and the great drummer Elvin Jones, who included it in his 1976 Blue Note album Prime Element. It’s a remarkable orchestration formulated with an Eastern-tinged introductory section, odd-metered groove, gospelized soul-jazz vibrations and a dash of funk. The shining soloists here are Nick Mazzarella on soprano, Lepine on tenor, and Kirchner, whose expressive idiom precedes the contribution of all horns in ecstasy. Everything ends with an inexorable ostinato.
The album is completed after “Lucid Dream”, a beautifully harmonized ballad performed in septet and dedicated to the giant bassist Charles Mingus.
This is an exciting album of rhythmic proficiency and stylistic variety. En route, you'll find countless pleasurable moments to savor with no redundancy.
Grade A
Favorite Tracks:
03 - At This Point in Time ► 10 - Planet Earth ► 11 - Jupiter Moon