Marilyn Mazur - Shamania

March 14, 2019

Label: RareNoise, 2019

Personnel - Marilyn Mazur: percussion, balaphone, kalimba; Lotte Anker: sax; Josefine Cronholm: voice, percussion; Sissel Vera Pettersen: sax and vocals; Hildegunn Oiseth: trumpet, goat horn; Lis Wessberg: trombone; Makiko Hirabayashi: keyboards; Ellen Andrea Wang: bass; Anna Lund: drums; Lisbeth Diers: percussion.

Percussion mastermind Marilyn Mazur gathers a 10-piece ensemble composed of female Scandinavian musicians and amazes us with 16 tremendously rhythmic numbers in her new project, Shamania. A former collaborator of Miles Davis and Jan Garbarek, Mazur alludes to instinctive, primitive rituals in a buoyant session that establishes eclecticism as a priority. The power of women in jazz is reflected here, and saxophonist Lotte Anker just confirms it through fiery exteriorizations full of timbral color on the opening and closing tunes, “New Secret” and “Space Entry Dance”, respectively.

The impeccable voice of Josefine Cronholm invites us to an Eastern litany on “Rytmeritual”, a liberating free-verse poem denoting the entrancing rhythm as a fundamental agent. Beautiful exotic sounds also emerge from “Shabalasa” and “Kalimbaprimis”, ecstatic Afro-style celebrations that bring Mazur to the center. The former piece is shaped with the balafon from Mali, while the latter is filled with the inharmonic overtones of the kalimba. The bandleader claims the spotlight once again on the purely percussive “Behind Clouds”. Other chiefly percussive rides include “Time Ritual”, methodized with human breath, and “Surrealistic Adventure”, where Sissel Vera Pettersen projects her powerful voice.

The preliminary tranquility carried out by trumpeter Hildegunn Oiseth on “Chaas”, veers to a cacophonic horn-driven eruption. The pressure is maintained even after keyboardist Makiko Hirabayashi takes the lead, and the psychedelic jazz-fusion ends like a mantra. She reactivates improvisational instincts on “Heartshaped Moon”, an exhilarating Afro-Cuban spiral that also features Sissel Vera in a quieter passage, this time on tenor saxophone.

With several traditions blurring and blending, and the horns entering and leaving the scenario, improvisation and creativity were consistently contemplated. “Fragments” is a collective effort in that sense, while the sax-percussion duet “Talk For Two”, a showcase for Mazur and Anker’s conversational facility, is bookended by the steep rhythmic accentuations in the less-than-a-minute pieces titled “Momamajobass”.

Shamania made me travel many miles through a colorful folklore that appeals to multiculturalism. It’s an important exertion that celebrates music in its entire dimension.

Favorite Tracks:
01 – New Secret ► 02 - Rytmeritual ► 03 - Chaas

Daniel Carter, Tobias Wilner, Djibril Toure, Federico Ughi - New York United

March 13, 2019

Label: 577 Records, 2019

Personnel – Daniel Carter: alto and tenor saxophones, flute, trumpet; Tobias Wilner: synth, beats and electronics; Djibril Toure: bass; Federico Ughi: drums.

New York United is an atmospheric, electronic-charged avant-garde quartet composed of Daniel Carter on woodwinds, Tobias Wilner on synth and electronics, Djibril Toure on bass, and Federico Ughi on drums. Despite prior collaborations, this record marks the studio debut of the band.

They take us on an underground tour that starts in downtown Manhattan, goes up to Harlem, and finishes in Brooklyn. A nearly 16-minute bonus track joins the other four, where music is made in the spur of the moment with no rehearsals or preconceived ideas.

Flute, synth, and electronic manipulations describe “Canal Street” in the first instance, until tenacious hi-hat accents, a complement of the magnetic drumbeat, starts to invade the neighborhood populated by Carter’s trumpet rambles.

This same trumpet is transferred to “125th Street”, a noir-ish electro-acoustic rendering of the Harlem with a sort of experimental trance in the mix. The heavy synth and muted trumpet link brooding indietronica with the cool jazz lines of Miles Davis. It feels like a long battle between light and darkness.

Abstraction and reflection mold “Nostrand Ave”, where Wilner’s synth acquires ghostly shapes and Carter contributes to the spectral composure with unhurried saxophone cogitations. Following an intermediary passage characterized by a primitive rhythm, cyclical electronic elements, and vocal samples, the group establishes a thin rocking texture where the synth melody resembles the sound of stringed instruments. Carter’s phrases become jazzier in the final stretch and the context shifts to a typical avant-jazz.

Having electronic glitches adorning the danceable pulse, “Flatbush Ave” feels simultaneously raw and fashionable, yet sparse in emotional peaks, whereas “East Flatbush”, the bonus track, has Ughi’s drumming as a central element. In due course, Toure’s dark bass drones are transformed into a well-defined groove, sustaining further flute rumination.

New York United mounts their music like structural block collages, avoiding collisions in favor of a mood-setting approach that not always enhances the narratives. A certain strangeness and a scintilla of jazz help to customize alternative, yet often lukewarm environments.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Canal Street ► 02 - 125th Street ► 03 - Nostrand Ave

Vijay Iyer / Craig Taborn - The Transitory Poems

March 12, 2019

Label: ECM Records, 2019

Personnel - Vijay Iyer: piano; Craig Taborn: piano.

Vijay Iyer and Craig Taborn are two like-minded improvisers that consistently venture off the rails of traditional piano playing, embracing polyrhythmic mutations, effusive lines that speed up into full-flight fancy, and reciprocal textural work that make them distinct architects of unprecedented free jazz sceneries.

They first played together in the early 2000’s, when hired by Roscoe Mitchell to take part of his nine-piece ensemble Note Factory. Now, as a duo, they bring out The Transitory Poems, a thrilling double-piano improvisation recorded live in Budapest, and whose title was excerpted from an interview given by the late pianist Cecil Taylor.

On the opening tune, “Life Line”, they ruminatively pursue an identical idea that almost shapes like a scale. Single-note lines set against dark voicings are later confronted with other bouncy counter-voicings emitted on higher registers. The piece goes through happy stages of modern classical music and boogie-woogie, takes the form of reflective and dreamy meditations, and evokes epic intonations over a simple pedal. It’s like living in a lucid state of temporary confusion, where we know that every musical puzzle will be solved.

Dedicated to painter Jack Whitten, “Sensorium” hangs on a congested interpolation of phrases before ending peacefully, shrouded in neoclassical streams of intuition.

“Kairós” is initially sketched with silences and short melodic manifestations that let radiant glimpses of light in. This sort of babbling exercise expands into a smart collection of sounds loaded with left-hand rhythmic jabs and other accentuations. Expect a hallucinating folk dance to finish. “Shake Down” is also structured with celebratory folk passages, centering in a rhythmic idea apt for mercurial variations. At a particular time, bass notes quiver as new sounds shape.

“S.H.A.R.D.S.” and “Clear Monolith” are definitely among my favorite pieces. The former employs a jazz-centered melodic-harmonic foil pushed forward in its last section by an electro-rock pulse, while the latter, dedicated to the great pianist Muhal Richard Abrams, is a staccato-infused impromptu turned avant epic. One can sense strong winds coming from the Far East and a spiritual current running through our bodies.

“Meshwork”, the record’s final track, is externalized with bustling jolts of energy, culminating in a slower version of Geri Allen’s “When Kabuya Dances”, here tackled with deep sentiment.

Boasting a phenomenal structural discernment, Iyer and Taborn do wonders with their agile fingers, merging their sounds to form a compact and unique whole. The world trusts these top-tier creative minds to keep shaking and amazing the modern music scene.

Favorite Tracks:
03 - Kairós ► 04 - S.H.A.R.D.S. ► 06 - Clear Monolith

Ben Winkelman Trio - Balance

March 11, 2019

Label: OA2 Records, 2019

Personnel - Ben Winkelman: piano; Matt Penman: acoustic bass; Obed Calvaire: drums.

Melbourne-raised, New York-based pianist/composer Ben Winkelman, an adept of the trio format, odd meters, and Latin scents, teams up for the first time with bassist Matt Penman and drummer Obed Calvaire on his fifth album as a leader.

Balancing composition and improvisation, he crosses the lines between Latin, jazz, and classical, bestowing a distinct feel to each of the 10 tunes that compose the album, which appropriately got the title Balance.

“BX 12” opens and closes the recording in differentiable ways. Whereas part one advocates an elastic post-bop with precise rhythmic punches, some classical innuendo, and invigorating Afro-Cuban enchantment during a rich coda, the second part conjures up a pronouncedly Latin spirit, brought under the wings of Penman and Calvaire. Both versions boast odd meters.

“Wheels” feels humorous and inquisitive, swinging happily and unreservedly after a theme garnished with elements of gospel. With the eloquence of the bandleader occupying the first half of the tune, the second half displays Penman plucking and sliding the bass strings with grace before the theme is rebuilt.

If the explorations of “Santiago” and “Fala Baixiño”, both melancholic waltzing rides, were not so attractive to me, then “Merri Creek” returns to those demanding yet spot-on rhythmic hooks. Here, the fine blend of classical and Afro-Cuban influence is mirrored in Winkelman’s improvisation, which also encapsulates a lot of jazz trait. Calvaire finds space for a brief workout that anticipates a classical-motivated passage.

Also flowing under odd tempos, “Window Shopping” shimmers with tenaciously folkloric elements from Latin America, becoming predominantly Afro-Cuban in its sensual last part. In contrast with this mood, “Bye-Ya”, a Thelonious Monk classic, is addressed with some interesting details within a jazz context. It is the sole non-original to appear on the album.

Winkelman puts on show a well-rounded set of fairly accessible music, even when emotions get a bit obfuscated by the technique. Without exceeding expectations, Balance should find its niche in eclectic jazz circles.

Favorite Tracks:
03 - Wheels ► 05 - Merri Creek ► 06 - Window Shopping

Gebhard Ullmann's Basement Research - Impromptus and Other Short Works

March 7, 2019

Label: WhyPlayJazz, 2019

Personnel - Gebhard Ullmann: tenor saxophone, clarinet; Steve Swell: trombone; Julian Arguelles: baritone saxophone; Pascal Niggenkemper: bass; Gerald Cleaver: drums.

The avant-jazz forays engineered by German saxophonist/clarinetist Gebhard Ullmann are, per usual, excitingly strenuous and worth to dive into. The most recent release of his esteemed project Basement Research, now celebrating its 25th anniversary, is called Impromptus and Other Short Works, featuring Ullmann on tenor saxophone and bass clarinet alongside a quartet of compatible accomplices: trombonist Steve Swell, baritonist Julian Arguelles, bassist Pascal Niggenkemper, and drummer Gerald Cleaver.

Despite its title, “Gospel” is not an effusively happy tune of faith and devotion, rather feeling like a deep-rooted band march. Melodically conducted by trombone, the tune has the taciturn tones of the baritone sax bestowing extra consistency. Its calm intensity, illustrated by amiable folk touches in a Frisell kind of way, is transferred to “Kleine Figuren”, where the horn players, by turns, deliver their statements over an unremitting harmonic progression.

“29 Shoes” makes us dance at the sound of its swinging short theme, suggesting a free-bop ride in the vicinity of “Fascinating Rhythm”. The pulsations rise and shine, combust, and then cool down, ending up in collective cacophonies while relying on both Cleaver’s lucid rhythmic maneuvers and Niggenkemper’s pedals to create tension.

The hook-filled “Almost Twenty-Eight” is an avant-garde delight with a virtuosic integration of written and improvised parts. Feel the power that comes from the burning solos and discover the adaptability of a rhythm section that knows exactly which moves to make for the sake of dynamics.

Six extemporary pieces get to showcase the musicians’ limber technique and spontaneous creativity. Both “Twelve Tones - Impromptu #5” and “Lines - Impromptu #2” display melodic ideas occasionally delivered in unison. They are quickly scattered in other directions or dissolved in calmer passages. In the case of the former piece, awesomely introduced by alto sax and trombone, we have the growling baritone infecting the scene after a few carefree interventions by the collective. In turn, the latter composition brims with expressive, groovy lines and colorful drumming patterns that take the form of simple cymbal scratches and rattles on the final section. Bowed bass vibratos also contribute, giving some support to Swell’s trombone manifesto.

The ceremonial “Impromptu #1” shows a predilection for deep notes, yet Ullmann’s eloquent tenor sax infuses some Eastern-flavored half steps over the modal changes, giving it the aspect of a spiritual song. “Sticks - Impromptu #4” directs the spotlight to Cleaver, who dilates his chops behind the drum kit with confidence, whereas “For Jim - Impromptu #6” starts as a rubato lament, but evolves into a waltz freshened up by a nice percussive flow with Latin traces.

This is a successful, enjoyable effort from a band that, knowing exactly where they want to go, has the intuition plus technical means to create winning music every step of the way.

Favorite Tracks:
02 - Twelve Tones - Impromptu #5 ► 03 - Impromptu #1 ► 11- Almost Twenty-Eight

Wing Walker Orchestra - Hazel

March 6, 2019

Label: ears&eyes, 2019

Personnel – Drew Williams: bass clarinet; Eric Trudel: tenor sax; Brad Mulholland: alto saxophone, clarinet; John Blevins: trumpet; Danny Gouker: trumpet; Karl Lyden: trombone; Nick Grinder: trombone; Jeff McLaughlin: guitar; Marta Sánchez: piano; Adam Hopkins: acoustic bass; Nathan Ellman-Bell: drums.

Wing Walker Orchestra is an 11-piece jazz ensemble led by the 30-year-old multi-reedist/composer Drew Williams, who let the saxophone aside to play exclusively bass clarinet on Hazel. The project features well-established musicians and bandleaders in their own right, such as saxophonist Eric Trudel, trumpeter John Blevins, Spanish pianist Marta Sanchez, and bassist Adam Hopkins.

The first seven tracks on the album form a suite inspired by Saga, the space fantasy comic book series penned by Brian K. Vaughan. Propelled by a dried beat and guitar ostinatos, “An Idea” also incorporates horn lines in tandem, precise counterpoint, and spiky unisons in a breezy, danceable exercise with a memorable melodic riff. The hues of “Backbone” feel pretty similar, with crisp lines hovering an uplifting rock-infused groove comparable to Mark Helias/Gerry Hemingway's foundation in their BassDrumBone trio.

“Lying” has handclaps and lyrical piano underpinning the solemn chamber fluxes created by the horns. Enlivened by the drummer, this piece effectively merges electronics, circular piano, and shrilling guitar drones for texture.

Elaborated yet emphatic rhythms grant “Heists” a modern vitality, while the charged horn section juxtaposes rhythmic figures in a clear search for punch and groove.

The band sticks to the original 9/4 tempo of Tune-Yards' “Look Around”, belting out an alternative folk-rock-meets-progressive-jazz. The tune hinges on the strong presences of bass clarinet and trombone, and ends with a collective ecstasy in the wake of a cautious saxophone statement.

The record actually gets more exciting in its last segment, and if “We’ve Seen These Walls Crumble” feels a bit dragging, “High” and Michael Attias’ “Marina”, a bonus track, are incredibly stimulating. On the former, you will find the bass clarinet echoing Eastern pronouncements and a rock-tinged guitar spreading energy, while the latter invites you to a fantastic trip, filled with precipitous sounds a-la Steve Lehman on the head and lots of humor during Trudel's saxophone escalations. It’s intricate and stunning, with delicious sharp angles to be examined.

Williams’ WWO channels so much inspiration from many directions, spicing things up with textural hues that always feel very musical. The group’s debut album was produced by trombonist/composer Alan Ferber.

Favorite Tracks:
08 – Look Around ► 10 - High ► 11 - Marina

Joe Martin - Étoilée

March 5, 2019

Label: Sunnyside Records, 2019

Personnel - Mark Turner: tenor and soprano saxophone; Kevin Hays: piano, Fender Rhodes; Joe Martin: acoustic bass; Nasheet Waits: drums.

Over the course of eight original compositions, the constituents of the album Étoilée, American bassist/composer Joe Martin offers us interesting musical moments. He is featured in a smashing quartet with saxist Mark Turner, keyboardist Kevin Hays, and drummer Nasheet Waits. Except for the latter, the remaining members had recorded the bassist's first album as a leader, Passages, which came out on the Fresh Sound label in 2002.

The two strongest pieces appear right at the top of the album's lineup. “A World Beyond” is subjected to a softly keened instrumentation, kicking in with a temperate bass groove and producing an unexpected polyphony in the head as Hays’ Fender Rhodes brings out an alternative melodic thread in the shape of comping. Turner irrigates each harmonic tunnel with his phrasal intelligence, while Hays improvises within a more reflective context. Elegance abounds.

The storytelling abilities of the artists stand out on “Malida”, a family-related composition introduced by a bass soliloquy that morphs into a McCoy-inspired modal groove in six. After exposing the theme’s melody in parallel, pianist and saxophonist enter in action-reaction mode during the latter’s solo. Hays also probes itineraries with grooving assurance and Martin closes out the improvisatory section with authenticity of touch.

“Prospecting” boasts enjoyable melodic fragmentation in the main statement and a feel-good articulation during the ad-lib utterances of the soloists. For this one, Martin took inspiration from the Brooklyn neighborhood where he and his family live. Lowering the vibrancy, "Two Birds" and “Long Winter” have much fewer slopes with the latter featuring a plaintive chamber coda with arco bass.

If the energetic “Safe”, a contrafact of “Just in Time”, draws from bop sources, “Étoilée” brings into play bolero-ish vibes with round edges, soft brushwork, and polished tones. Soprano saxophone and piano supply the improvisations.

Nothing better than having a gorgeous blues concluding this ride, and “5x3” accomplishes that mission with odd tempos.

Not being an ‘outside’ player, Martin, whose compositional style strips away major complexities or fusses, still shows a fondness for adventure.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - A World Beyond ► 02 - Malida ► 08 - 5x3

Quinsin Nachoff's Flux - Path of Totality

March 4, 2019

Label: Whirlwind Recordings, 2019

Personnel – Quinsin Nachoff: tenor and soprano saxophones; David Binney: alto and C-melody saxophones; Matt Mitchell: piano, Prophet 6; synth, harpsichord, harmonium; Kenny Wollesen: drums, percussion; Nate Wood: drums + guests.

Since the release of Flux (Mythology Records, 2016), it was obvious to me that New York-based saxophonist Quinsin Nachoff, a native of Toronto, was predestined to be a big name in modern jazz. To prove I wasn't wrong, we have the six fabulous originals that compose his new album, Path of Totality, inspired by the 2017 total eclipse of the sun.

The stellar bass-less group, known as Flux, includes the following core members: David Binney on alto and C-melody saxophones, Matt Mitchell on piano, synth, and harmonium, Kenny Wollesen on drums and Wollesonic percussion (his distinguished trademark), and the newly added Nate Wood on drums. Guest musicians join them on selected tracks, contributing to an adventure rich in spins and thrills.

The album is bookended by two jubilant numbers: the title track and “Orbital Resonances”. Both feature the pair of drummers expanding the usual quartet into a quintet. Their unobtrusive integration carries a modern feel through, with the horns creating conjointly until parting ways to embark on fluttering individual flights imbued in rhythmic color.

“Bounce”, a crisp and dynamic effort that includes Kimball theater organ (played by Jason Barnsley) in its final section, effectively assimilates electronics and drums, with Wood soloing up front. Written parts are cleverly placed between the improvisations, and you will even find musing suspensions populated by Mitchell’s intricate creativity. The pianist enjoys the limelight again on the John Cage-inspired “Toy Piano Meditation”, a serene exercise where he operates on several octaves delivering stunning dark voicings and nimble single-note phrases. Wollesen initially embellishes the piano playing with enigmatic cymbal scratches and opportune splashes while guest vibraphonist/marimbist Mark Duggan contributes addictive comping during the reedists’ explorations.

The noir singularity of “March Macabre” is infectious, tying in Wollesen’s odd percussion, the trombones of Ryan Keberle and Alan Ferber, the trumpets of Matt Holman and Dan Urness, the low reeds of Carl Maraghi, and Orlando Hernadez’s tap dancing. In terms of solos, Binney embraces darkness with labyrinthine effusion, Mitchell brings further emotional impression with the harmonium, and then Nachoff decides to search for light, escalating into the sky with an invigorating soprano spin. Inevitably, this tune has political connotations.

“Splatter”, which is probably my favorite piece on the album, features Matt Mitchell infusing as much mystery as atonal splendor on the harpsichord as well on synths. Working on top of Wollesen’s rhythmic syncopations and Mitchell’s geometric patterns, Binney and Nachoff show off what they can do, which is plenty. The former is an authentic master of precise phrasing while the latter excavates timbral possibilities in rapid-fire phrases that burn and delight.

This album abounds with appealing ideas, both textural and improvisational, as well as gripping tension, which is rarely abandoned. I got completely dragged into the narrative fluidity of a group showing a phenomenal facility in blazing undiscovered sonic paths. A wonderful point of entry for new listeners who want to testify Nachoff’s unbridled virtuosity.

Favorite Tracks:
01 – Path of Totality ► 04 - March Macabre ► 05 - Splatter

Larry Ochs / Nels Cline / Gerald Cleaver - What Is To Be Done

February 28, 2019

Label: Clean Feed, 2019

Personnel - Larry Ochs: saxophone; Nels Cline: electric guitar; Gerald Cleaver: drums.

If you want to figure out how music can be so ferocious and intimate at the same time, you should try What Is To Be Done, a compulsory trio record featuring saxophonist Larry Ochs, guitarist Nels Cline, and drummer Gerald Cleaver. The album brings a special motivation since it marks the 500th release of the Lisbon-based avant-jazz imprint Clean Feed.

The three musicians have been gigging together for quite some time but never had recorded before as a group. Saxophonist and guitarist were temporary partners in the Rova’s Electric Ascension bands, while Cleaver records with Cline for the first time, taking the opportunity to tighten the musical bond with Ochs after their duo album Songs of the Wild Cave (RogueArt, 2018).

They let the music breathe in the introductory section of the mercurial “Outcries Rousing”, where we hear elongated, electrified guitar chords sustaining a bashful saxophone. Moments later, Ochs wallows in a rasping rumpus with just Cleaver’s magnetic backbeat underneath. Even when Cline joins again, causing a darned detonation of acid-rock and proto-funk, the musicians find their own space, stretching their imagination to reinforce the collective’s integrity. A rare dark atmospheric passage seems to motivate Cline to subvert the sonic milieu. He dishes out twangy, spasmodically electro strokes synced with methodical percussive thumps. This segment evolves into an avalanche of sound created by continual noise guitar, fraught and resilient saxophone trajectories delineated with dark tones, and the catchy, athletic pulses from Cleaver. He is a fantastic rhythm sculptor, who also excels in the following structural block marked by prog-rock invention and electronica slipperiness. Running over 20 minutes, there’s a lot going on here, and the trio even stops by power-metal territories before Ochs detours toward East, throwing in sumptuous, Arabic-flavored phrases.

“A Pause, a Rose” is initially tinged with folk influences, affected by cascades of draggy electronic effects, and ultimately buoyed up by a lovely, fragmented trippy rhythm that produces glorious results with the guitar and soprano sax atop.

Like the opening track, “Shimmer Intend Spark Groove Defend” goes above 20 minutes, relying on the intense capacity of communication between the trio members, who work from many different angles. Exhibiting seamless transitions while pummeling with impressive force, this track includes relentless primitive rhythms, eerie drones, agonizing groans and spiraling phrases on the saxophone, and a variety of guitar textures comprising serene loopy vibes, loud spiky liberations, grungy tautness, and psych-rock stabs.

This is a tiny treasure of a disc, where you find no subterfuges and every section becomes a fresh discovery.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Outcries Rousing ► 03 - Shimmer Intend Spark Groove Defend

Lucian Ban / Alex Simu - Free Fall

February 27, 2019

Label: Sunnyside, 2019

Personnel – Lucian Ban: piano; Alex Simu: clarinet, bass clarinet.

Pianist Lucian Ban and clarinetist Alex Simu have many things in common. They are both of Romanian descent and share symbiotic musical aptitudes with each other, at the same time that reveal an admirable availability to dive deep into an unselfish otherworldliness of diaphanous enchantment.

The outstanding opening tune on Free Fall, their first collaborative work, confirms what I just said. “Quiet Storm” was penned for multi-reedist Jimmy Giuffre, whose trio with Paul Bley and Steve Swallow inspired the music on this album. Sensitive and prayerful, the heavenly melodies navigate the simple harmonization, also a carrier of exceptional delicacy and touching beauty. The same posture is followed on “Jesus Maria”, an early Carla Bley composition that was first recorded by and better associated with the Giuffre Trio. Although unexpanded in tone and texture, you will find infinite compassion expressed in the suave movements.

Unearthing an improvisatory urgency, the title track brims with free, instinctive interplay, in which poised piano grooves and helical clarinet lines work together to achieve a dynamic combustion. The static shininess of “Mysteries”, another free piece, is diverted by a mildly stirring passage initiated halfway. At that point, the pianist opted to deliver pointed low-pitched jabs mixed with swirls on the middle-register, keeping pace with the clarinetist’s swift runs.

Simu claimed the spotlight during a solo bass clarinet presentation titled “Near”. He also co-wrote “The Pilgrim” with Folker Oosting, a piece initially marked by popping sounds while still denoting a classical innuendo refined by a bolero-ish vibe. Gradually, the blues takes shape, triumphing in the final section.

The duo brings the album to a close with two Giuffre numbers: “Cry, Want”, a scrupulous, bluesy lamentation, and “Used To Be”, a sort of blithe piano song that serves as a vehicle for Simu’s melodic expeditions.

Moving through wide and confined spaces with ease, Ban and Simu operate at the fringes of jazz and classical, communicating pleasant feelings as they search and create with abandon.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Quiet Storm ► 02 - Free Fall ► 07 – Cry, Want

Steph Richards - Take The Neon Lights

February 26, 2019

Label: Birdwatcher Records, 2019

Personnel – Steph Richards: trumpet, flugelhorn; James Carney: piano; Sam Minaie: bass; Andrew Munsey: drums.

Following up a knotty experimental debut album in which electronic and percussive components played essential roles, rising star trumpet player Steph Richards returns with an outstanding sophomore disc. Having New York City as backdrop and named after some of her favorite poems, the eight tracks on Take The Neon Lights were acoustically shaped in the company of pianist James Carney, bassist Sam Minaie, and drummer Andrew Munsey. The four artists pour a great deal of feeling into each tune as they tour musical paths with sincerity and courage. The trumpeter, a practitioner of Butch Morris’ conduction language, has collaborated with jazz greats such as Henry Threadgill and Anthony Braxton, as well as iconic indie rock bands like Talking Heads and Pixies.

“Take The Neon Lights and Wear a Crown” is sonically rich and Richards gets plenty of mileage from pure, contrasting timbres, extended techniques, and verbal accentuations. There’s depth of feel in every note she plays, whether round or spiky, and in the aftermath of an intense rhythmic commotion, the band adopts a more reflective posture, veiling the scenario with subtle musical shadings.

Producing a different sort of sparkle, “Brooklyn Machine” thrives with mechanical-like automation in the rhythm, yet the pace varies along the way. The piece suggests a happy marriage between psych-rock and manic electronica with dialoguing horn lines at its center.

“Time And Grime” incorporates trumpet punctuation, prepared and conventional piano playing, and some whirling and growling moments of pure sensory pleasure. It also shows the band’s propensity for probing texture with a wide sense of synchronization and unity. The same philosophy is put into practice on “Rumor of War”, whose abstract platform, launched by cackling muted trumpet, subdued piano notes, and deep percussion, gradually reshapes into lyrical.

Extremely satisfying, “Skull Of Theaters” allowed me to find pathos and experience some nostalgia in its refreshing crossing between old and new jazz. The music takes tentative directions as it progresses, providing us with moments of hope, exuberance, and some humor, mostly thanks to Carney’s livelier intervention. It ends peacefully, being immediately followed by “Stalked By Tall Buildings”, where the competent rhythm section, whether operating under agitated or calm environments, creates propitious conditions for Richards’ inventive stretches. An attentive listener won’t have trouble in detecting odd ways of swinging, a slick facility in changing dynamics, and spectacular details in the rhythm department.

At once erudite and powerful, Richards’ new body of work takes us to places of avant-jazz merit where ambiguity and tension are created with open-mindedness, subtlety, and finesse. There’s definitely good music here, in sufficient quantity to keep the listeners engrossed in what’s going on.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Take The Neon Lights ► 02 - Brooklyn Machine ► 07 - Stalked By Tall Buildings

David Torn / Tim Berne / Ches Smith - Sun of Goldfinger

February 25, 2019

Label: ECM Records, 2019

Personnel – David Torn: guitar, live-looping, electronics; Tim Berne: alto saxophone; Ches Smith: drum set, percussion, tanbou.

Sun of Goldfinger is an outstanding, explorative trio composed of David Torn on guitar, live-looping, and electronics; Tim Berne on alto saxophone; and Ches Smith on drums, electronics, and tanbou. The group first played together in 2010 when Torn accepted Berne’s invitation to play a trio gig in Brooklyn, an event that got the guitarist very well impressed with the inventiveness of Smith.

Let me just start by telling you that the three-song album presented here is a must-have for fans of new music, allowing elements of jazz, rock, and avant-garde to blend under scrupulously burning arrangements and engrossing impromptu creations.

Torn’s “Spartan Before Hit It” is the central piece on the record, a modern symphonic marvel in every aspect that thrives with the addition of guitarists Ryan Ferreira and Mike Bagetta, super keyboardist Craig Taborn, and the strings of Scorchio Quartet, which contributes with two violins, a cello, and a viola. The song, tranquilly cinematic in its first minutes, has a rich piano underlying it and is ignited through a solid compound of saxophone-guitar exclamations, later turned into red-hot masses of sound, and a fancy rhythm that lies in-between the primitive African and the ecstatic Brazilian. The electronic effects are tastefully integrated and never feel as outsider elements. Surrounding, organic sounds penetrate deeply into our heads, extending emotions through a bright light before entering into a chilly, drone-dominant phase that paralyzes and bewilders. The autumnal landscapes are then reintegrated, with Torn’s folk gestures warming it up.

It’s phenomenal to see how the structural discipline and adventurous freedom work so well together, also prevailing on the two other spontaneous tracks. You’ll find three creative individuals speaking in their own languages and fusing different elements to conjure a unique collective atmosphere that unveils all their musical intelligence. They are master colorists working from different angles of time and space.

“Eye Meddle” combines guitar chords seasoned with beautifully atonal flavors, loops of several frequencies, odd percussion, and resilient grid-like sax lines that can sound furious and elastic. Halfway, look for the intoxicating psych-rock scenario mounted with a groovy hip-hop flavor running underneath. Hallucinating, this trip still offers a distorted guitar solo over a vibe-infused funky rhythm and cyclic buzzing drones emitted by guitar and saxophone. Nothing is out of place and the sound is fascinating.

Concluding the album, “Soften The Blow” starts off like poetry in motion, serenading us with passive dark tones. Wavy chordal twang and measured electronic fluxes are part of the game. The conversion to chaos happens when Torn inflames his guitar with a mix of distortion and delay in a rock-centric obsession, Berne dives into extravagant in-and-out work, and Smith uses nimble syncopation to produce a snarly pulsation.

Sun of Goldfinger is pure teamwork and nothing short of remarkable. Their unmissable debut album is powerful, it grabs you hard and you rise with it.

Favorite Tracks:
02 - Spartan Before Hit It ► 03 - Soften The Blow

Russ Lossing - Motian Music

February 21, 2019

Label: Sunnyside, 2019

Personnel – Russ Lossing: piano; Masa Kamaguchi: bass; Billy Mintz: drums.

Pianist Russ Lossing dabbles in the fascinating musical universe of Paul Motian, an artist he knew very well. For 12 years, they were friends and collaborators, and Lossing decided this was the time to honor the late genius whose tunes fall somewhere between the lyrical and the abstract. Paraphrasing the pianist: “this music plays itself.”

On Motian Music, his debut on Sunnyside, he teams up with longtime associates bassist Masa Kamaguchi and drummer Billy Mintz, a pair of creative minds with an elevated rhythmic sensibility.

The first couple of pieces, “Asia” and “Abacus”, date from the late ’70s, but their shapes are unlike. The former, carrying some folk connotations and emotional grandeur, mirrors the splendor of this piano trio; in turn, the latter comes enveloped by a magnetic abstraction and instigates free exploration. During the first minutes, Mintz offers us tonality, having the round, somewhat pinched bass notes from Kamaguchi dancing at his side as well as Lossing’s resolute, if perplexing, melodic lines.

Both drummer and bassist do a great job throughout, but they are particularly in evidence on pieces like “Dance”, a permanent push-pull activity with Lossing’s fluid ideas floating atop, and “Mumbo Jumbo”, a three-way conversation characterized by a strong rhythmic temperament and some motivic impetuosity that never reaches a factual state of anxiety.

Originally included on Motian's album It Should Have Happened a Long Time Ago (ECM, 1984), “Fiasco” and “Introduction” are tackled with tempo exemption, allowing lots of liberties in the harmonic and melodic demarcations. In the case of the first composition, things are stirred up with a swinging feel at once familiar and eccentric. Conversely, “Introduction” adopts a reserved posture and is extended to six minutes against the three of the original recording. Bright flashes of piano convey a weirdly dreamlike aura gently underpinned by airier inflections of bass and brushed drums.

The recording couldn’t have ended in a better way, with the seraphic “Psalm” expressing a levitating simplicity that touches the sublime. Without subverting the art of Motian, Lossing puts a personal touch in this startlingly intimate album. The results are more than satisfactory and fans of the drummer will instantly relate to the music.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Asia ► 08 - Mumbo Jumbo ► 10 - Psalm

Anna Webber - Clockwise

February 20, 2019

Label: Pi Recordings, 2019

Personnel - Anna Webber: tenor saxophone, flutes; Jeremy Viner: tenor saxophone, clarinet; Jacob Garchik: trombone; Christopher Hoffman: cello; Matt Mitchell: piano; Chris Tordini: bass; Ches Smith: drums, vibraphone, timpani.

Tenorist/flutist/composer Anna Webber is a compelling exponent of the avant-jazz panorama who has been leading interesting projects such as Percussive Mechanics and Simple Trio. Her most ambitious project to date, Clockwise, marks her debut on Pi Recordings and homages some of her favorite 20th century composers like Iannis Xenakis, Karlheinz Stockhausen, and John Cage. Here, she spearheads a snappy working septet of gifted musicians, delivering nine stimulating tunes with progressive artistry.

Two pieces inspired by Xenakis’ percussive work Persephassa bookend the album: “Kore II” and “Kore I”, opening and closing tunes, respectively. The former is deliciously timbral and contrapuntal, racing with fragments of jagged angularity and pushed forward by an odd groove in seven; the latter is cooked with a slippery, steam-powered tempo and spotlights Jacob Garchik on trombone; it slightly rocks at some point before the culminating crescendo.

I felt a high-energy punch with the buzz-like drones and hypnotic pace of “Idiom II”, in which codified and notated elements were applied. It was like hearing a Scottish bagpipe intermittently discontinued by the injection of low-pitched rhythmic accents. A cello solo reaches far corners… sprawling horn-driven embroideries let the piano and the vibraphone stand out… rhythmic patterns are left to the final section. It sounds beautiful!

The three uncanny parts of “King of Denmark” are intensely percussive and the first of them presents kinetic manifestations from vibraphone, shrieky piano, continual flute chirping, terse cello traces, and indistinct horn sounds. This sets the tone for “Loper”, whose pondered kickoff never impeded the energy to flow. Afterwards, everything transforms with surprise, and a spectacular tenor solo arises, having lacerating cello incisions and bass kicks running in the back. The passage before the final is equally amazing, arranged with unisons and scattered horn wails uttered with a mix of authority and passion. Webber borrowed certain elements of Edgar Varèse’s Ionisation, a musical composition written for 13 percussionists, for this piece.

The title track starts by combining unhurried bass notes, glasslike vibrations, and keyed up bass flute. Our attention is deflected to Mitchell’s thought-provoking classical-influenced pianism before reaching a collective conclusion.

“Array” combines upbeat funk attitude with pointillist fixation whilst the short-lived “Hologram Best” registers John Cage as the motivational source. It showcases outgoing sax lines flying over a danceable surface permeated by piano and horn lines in counterpoint.

Even though individual contributions take the form of strong improvisations, it’s the magnitude of the collective that makes this body of work so extraordinary. Everyone listens closely to one another, a fact that compels the interplay to feel so instinctual, whereas the written parts have no dull moments, demonstrating ingenious imagination.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Kore II ► 02 - Idiom II ► 03 - King of Denmark I/Loper

Nate Wooley - Columbia Icefield

February 18, 2019

Label: Northern Spy Records, 2019

Personnel – Nate Wooley: trumpet; Mary Halvorson: guitar; Susan Alcorn: pedal steel; Ryan Sawyer: drums.

American trumpeter-improviser Nate Wooley writes cleverly configured music for a new experimental ensemble featuring guitarist Mary Halvorson, pedal steel guitarist Susan Alcorn, and drummer Ryan Sawyer, who doubles on vocals. All three compositions on Columbia Icefield (the album was titled for the largest area of interconnected glaciers in the Rocky Mountains) run between 10 and 20 minutes. The quirky quartet builds structural blocks according to Wooley’s arrangements, in a demonstration of versatility and imagination. The bandleader pictures the inaccessible ice field as a metaphor of man’s relationship to nature, many times suggesting sonic mystery.

“Lionel Trilling” starts off with concurrent guitar ostinatos filled with acerbic atonal intervals and subtle chromatic shifts, a relentless cadence sustained by a sort of obsessive thrust. As the tune progresses, surprising rhythms erupt, bringing Sawyer’s unpredictable drumming to the forefront. You must wait around for controlled moments of chaos as well as intervals of reflective stillness. Both invite us to picture vast hyperborean landscapes in our minds. Rasping, vibrating slides on the guitar and vocal effects help to magnify the milieu, which, near the final, shapes into a waltzing, electronic-like passage with rhythmic patterns atop.

Refraining the dynamics, the group embraces a certain languidness for most of the duration of “Seven in the Wood”. Alcorn and Halvorson combine their quirky sonorities, weaving a serene tapestry over which Wooley pronounces crisp lines with descriptive properties. Sawyer creates uncertainty in his interventions, and the reverent care for nature seems to emerge from a solemn folk source. This hushed instrumentation lingers until Halvorson turns on distortion and Sawyer takes his drums to thunderbolt heights for a torsional indie-rock flutter.

The title “With Condolences” doesn’t mislead, considering that the music resembles a requiem. However, on occasion, the dismalness is cut out by the tribulation that results from layered instrumental entanglements. Sawyer’s narration is done in conformity with the tenebrous understructure.

The music orchestrated by Wooley might not move a mountain, but has the power to shake it.

Favorite Tracks:
02 - Seven in the Wood ► 03 - With Condolences

Brittany Anjou - Enamigo Reciprokataj

February 14, 2019

Label: Origin Records, 2019

Personnel - Brittany Anjou: piano; Greg Chudzik: bass; Nicholas Anderson: drums + guests: Ari Folman-Cohen: bass; Ben Perowsky: drums.

The well-traveled American pianist/composer Brittany Anjou titled her debut album in Esperanto because that language mirrors jazz improvisation in the way that both promote intercultural dialogue, democracy, and self-expression.

Inspired by Igor Stravinsky’s Petrushka ballet, Enamigo Reciprokataj means reciprocal love and its content is defined by original compositions, some of them honoring great pianists. Featuring Greg Chudzik on bass and Nicholas Anderson on drums, the album includes an additional team of foundation builders - bassist Ari Folman-Cohen and drummer Ben Perowsky - on the two last tracks.

“Starlight” and the “Reciproka Elektra”, opening and closing tunes, respectively, are adorned with electronic manipulation and are strictly connected with each other. The former piece shows a strong grasp of melody and rich post-bop tradition, while the latter gets both trios together in an electronic composite that conjures up offbeat techno-like trances.

The five-part suite Reciprokataj, a shapeshifter, plays a central role in the journey, offering a variety of environments while bridging tradition and innovation with epiphanic manifestations. The classical influence on “Cyrene (Flight of the Butterfly)” is monumental, just as much as the rhythm is vertiginous; “Girls Who Play Violin” feels looser, exposing sweeping piano, plaintive pizzicato and arco bass, and rich cymbal work; the epic block chords that instate “Harfa” takes us to a cool, round 4/4 harmonic progression and relaxed brushed drumming that call for Anjou’s improvisation; and the lushly driven, 5/4-metered “Olive You” contains crescendos, sudden explosions, spiky accents, and melodic spirals, until the tempo is modified, firstly to accommodate the bassist’s solo and, secondly, drum stretches over a vamp; lastly, the compact pianism of “Flowery Distress” impelled me to imagine a musical crossing between Moby and Aaron Park’s Little Big, a sort of electronica-meets-indie-rock scenario.

Intercalated with parts of the suite, there are tributes to influential jazz pianists: the waltzing, brush-driven “Snuffaluffagas” homages Ahmad Jamal, while “Hard Boiled Soup” honors McCoy Tyner, throwing fractions of Kenny Barron into the mix. In turn, “Balliou for Bartok” heads into the bolero mode as it celebrates the classical virtues of Hungarian Béla Bartók.

Anjou is a virtuosa with a determined touch and nimble liveliness. This accomplished body of work, which took 13 years to be completed, is sufficiently gratifying to make us wonder what her next plans are.

Favorite Tunes:
01 - Starlight ► 02 - Reciprokataj II: Cyrene ► 08 - Reciprokataj IV: Olive You

Matthew Shipp Trio - Signature

February 13, 2019

Label: ESP Disk, 2019

Personnel - Matthew Shipp: piano; Michael Bisio: bass; Newman Taylor Baker: drums.

Pianist Matthew Shipp reunites with trio mates, bassist Michael Bisio and drummer Newman Taylor Baker, to bring his bewitching signature into a new album, the follow-up to the magnificent Piano Song (Thirsty Ear, 2017). This collection of inventive tunes, precisely called Signature, exhibits the title song as the opening sentence. It's a peaceful exploration of melodic lines crafted with intervallic curiosity in the middle register and liberally anchored by left-hand conductions. Bass and drums sneak in nicely and softly, tinging the scenario with an opalescent luster without ever overriding the pianist’s moves.

“Flying Saucer” starts off with some agitation in the lower register of the keyboard. As Shipp moves up to adjacent octaves, Bisio percolates a compulsive, entangling, rapid-fire sequence of notes that augments the song's textural density. Simultaneously, Baker varies the rhythm, opting for what better suits the moment. The zealous interplay perseveres with verbal fluidity until reaching a playful, hypnotically paced finale.

Ruminative classical cadences, harmonic ambiguity, and rhythmic tension distinguish “The Way”. Here, you can trace Shipp's deep notes systematically articulated with percussive spirit, and then enjoy a portion of playfulness in the course of a few sequences that push you into some runaway train heading to some darker place. This dazzling activity within indistinct structures is an archetype of the trio.

Revolving around an eloquent riff whose source could be the classical genre or a Broadway show, “Zo #2” distributes puzzling note choices over the warp and woof created by a sturdy bass-drums coalition. Playing with similar elements, “Speech of Form” is considerably more enigmatic, fenced in its own dreamy, modern classical universe. Different yet still fitting, “Stage Ten” adopts a conventional swinging drive in the foundation, supporting concentric explorations with prepared piano.

Alluding to Chick Corea, “This Matrix” runs over 16 minutes, spinning with rhythmic fulgor and glistening with creative patterns and boppish lines soaked in extravagance and chromaticism. It comes with a bass monologue and turns out charmingly lyrical in its last section.

Shipp remains faithful to freer forms of expression and Signature gives you another chance to dive into the magical complexity of his resourceful music.

Favorite Tracks:
05 - The Way ► 08 - Zo #2 ► 10 - The Matrix

Stephan Crump's Rosetta Trio - Outliers

February 12, 2019

Label: Papillon Sounds, 2019

Personnel - Stephan Crump: acoustic bass; Liberty Ellman: acoustic guitar; Jamie Fox: electric guitar.

Stephan Crump plays the bass with a sturdy hand and disciplined passion. His auspicious note displacements and impeccable notions of tempo made him not only a first choice sideman (Vijay Iyer, Rez Abbasi, Liberty Ellman) but also a highly respected bandleader, responsible for exciting projects such as Borderlands Trio, Rhombal, and Rosetta Trio.

It is precisely the latter group that has a new album, the fourth, on the way. Outliers offers glittery collective lyricism, prismatic improvisations, and a courageous unconventionality through complex yet deeply engaging structures. Crump has put this trio together in 2004, picking guitarists Liberty Ellman and Jamie Fox as associates.

The opening tune, “In Waves”, turns loose pleasurable electro-acoustic sounds, displaying a certain type of guitar strumming and strokes that made Emerson, Lake & Palmer’s “From The Beginning” popping up in my head. This worked as an unexpected and quite nostalgic art-rock moment for me.

Also on the fringe of a refined rock but additionally bringing something more in its guiding staccatos, the title track complies with ravishing shifting practices. Rhythmically puzzling, it passes the sensation of an African dance fused with rock erudition.

Performed with impassioned abandon, “Synapse” is pure, bright fusion. It exposes funk-rock caught in intricate unisons and smooth flamenco-like passages in 5/4 with alternate solos by Ellman and Fox on the acoustic and electric guitar, respectively. And because it’s impossible to guess where the band is going to take us next, “Cryoseism”, the first compositional contribution by Ellman to the group, is another fusion tale, only this time blending fizzy funk with the type of classical wonder often suggested by Yes’ guitarist Steve Howe. On “Eskima Dream”, a tune retrieved from the Rhombal album, there is more scintillating funk, and the tenacious bass bounce joins the chordal guitar flourishes in a danceable ritual in seven.

The group impresses in a similar manner when tackling slower tunes like “Re Eyes” and “Middle March”. The former carries an eminent folkish lyricism, advancing consistently at an unhurried 9/4 tempo until superseded by a middle passage that appears affiliated with world-music; the latter, one of the two compositions on the album written for Crump’s brother Patrick, is initially swamped in the lugubrious introspection created by arco bass and fingerpicking guitar, later opening up new horizons through the beautiful melody.

With a sensational facility to make odd tempos sound natural, Rosetta Trio operates with a true, collaborative spirit, exploring all-string sonic possibilities with imagination. Outliers is not to be missed.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - In Waves ► 02 - Re Eyes ► 05 - Synapse

Wadada Leo Smith - Rosa Parks: Pure Love

February 11, 2019

Label: TUM Records, 2019

Personnel – Wadada Leo Smith: trumpet; Min Xiao-fen: voice, pipa; Karen Parks: voice; Carmina Escobar: voice; Shalini Vijayan: violin; Mona Tian: violin; Andrew McIntosh: viola; Ashley Walters: cello; Ted Daniel: trumpet; Hugh Ragin: trumpet; Graham Haynes: cornet; Pheeroan akLaff: drum set; Hardedge: electronics.

The creativity of trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith, a dominant figure of the avant-jazz scene, boasts unlimited musical boundaries, crispness of sound, and resolute leadership. Besides mirroring these capabilities in his attractive way of playing, Smith is a conscious man and activist.

His new outing, Rosa Parks: Pure Love - an oratorio of seven songs - consists in a set of triumphal hymns presented like an extended suite and arranged according to his unique style and vision. Paying tribute to the iconic civil rights activist mentioned in the title, the album features a double quartet, three female vocalists, a drummer and an electronics wizard, as well as samplings of recordings by Anthony Braxton, Leroy Jenkins, Steve McCall, and Smith. It’s a philosophical type of narrative where the bandleader experiments his own musical language, Ankhrasmation, on top of the traditional oratorio form.

Segments and tunes are grouped conveniently, and “Prelude” opens the recording like a reveille, calling the attention for the civil rights through elongated trumpet notes in unison that soon take us to “Vision Dance 1: Resistance and Unity”. The latter’s tonal magnitude bursts in a magisterial chamber phenomenon. I appoint these dances as the most absorbing parts on the album, the ones with more focus on improvisation.

“Vision Dance 2”, for instance, flexes and contorts, pulled by poised rhythmic undercurrents and electronic noises. Fragmented in the beat and slightly disjointed in the articulation, the tune aggregates excerpts from Braxton’s “Composition 8D” and McCall’s rousing drum work on Air’s “No. 2”. While “Vision Dance 3” is a chamber feast sketched with pre-recorded percussion, multiple muted trumpets, and flickering violin waves, “Vision Dance 4” is bookended by trumpet duets that show the bandleader playing alongside Graham Haynes.

The importance of the stringed instruments in shaping the momentum of the tunes can be observed throughout. Other highlights are “Song 3: Change It!”, which features an excerpt of Jenkins’ violin (“Keep On Trucking, Brother”), Karen Parks’ potent voice, and the inspired percussive jolts of Pheeroan akLaff; “Song 5: No Fear”, the only one featuring lyrics by Rosa Parks; and “The Known World: Apartheid”, where Smith is featured as a soloist.

Mounted as an Oriental folk song, “Song 1: The Montgomery Bus Boycott, 381 Days: Fire” has Min Xiao-fen singing with operatic enunciation while playing the pipa with earnestness. The melodic sound of the violin confers it a yearning sweetness.

With quizzical parts and curious editing, this is a record with both polished and rugged chamber surfaces, feeling more earthly rooted when compared with the stunning America’s National Parks (TUM, 2016). Even less impactful than the latter, Rosa Parks: Pure Love breathes confidence and deserves attention for its musical and political statements.

Favorite Tracks:
02 - Vision Dance 1 ► 06 - Vision Dance 2 ► 07 - Song 3: Change It!

Santiago Leibson Trio - Episodes

February 7, 2019

Label: Fresh Sound New Talent, 2018

Personnel - Santiago Leibson: piano; Matt Pavolka: bass; Mark Ferber: drums.

Santiago Leibson, an Argentine pianist based in New York, leads a new trio with bassist Matt Pavolka and drummer Mark Ferber on his new outing, Episodes. The follow up of Out of Order, an album recorded last year, along with bassist Drew Dress and drummer Devin Gray, features eight originals treated with tight interplay and shaped with a peculiar sonority that illustrates their musical qualities.

Advocating tranquility, Leibson opens the album with “Go”, where he carves an angular melodic riff in the style of Misha Mengelberg onto the nonchalant swinging surface created by his trio mates. Fragmented piano phrases, relaxed and filled with rhythmic intention, draw back and let the bass talk before the restitution of the theme. Other swinging incursions were detected on “Basement Complaints”, whose elegant nature reveals some connections to Herbie Nichols, and “Salida”, an uptempo jaunt to the realms of Herbie Hancock, where we find Leibson inventing rhythmic figures during the bar trades with Ferber.

Despite the inaugural collective thump and piano trills, “Gentle Push” promotes stagnation and discretion and never really looms into motion. In a similar fashion, “Vagon” feels docile in its presentation, slowly promenading with bass-piano unisons and suggesting a vague, spacious atmosphere reminiscent of Paul Motian. Contradicting the premise, the tune drops its vaporous state in favor of a more solid swinging form.

“Second Movement” hints at classical music in its early dreamy phase, but then spirals into intransigent interval risings à-la Chick Corea. This mutation happens right after Pavolka’s improvisation, genially patterned with underlying chromaticism.

Mechanically agitated by an odd-metered Brubeckian groove, “U#5” advances with melodic stumbles until disrupted by a calm rubato passage. The pure acoustics heard here continues with some mystery on “Weird Doors”, which closes out the album with piano legato in a poised 3/4 context.

Although it might not be noticed straight away, Episodes is a swinging album with abundant evocations of past grandeur. Thence, the trio of performers lay bare their solid command of time and space to create new narratives.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Go ► 03 - Basement Complaints ► 04 - Second Movement