Jazz Recommendations – 2016 releases

Tunnel Six – journeys, places, stories (Self-Produced)

The newest from the Tunnel Six ensemble falls pretty well in line with what’s come before.  The dramatic builds of intensity, the soaring melodicism, the amiable charm of folk music and how it shakes hands firmly with a modern jazz built on a foundation of imagery and mood more than it is blues and swing.  Their debut Lake Superior came out swinging with the dramatic surges and thick melodies, and it really didn’t hold back on the moodiness either, and their follow-up Alive kept to the same formula.  It was simply more of the good stuff.  Now, with their third recording, the same elements are present, but the expressions are delivered with a greater confidence, and no less importantly, with a wide-open lyricism that trades in the focused intensity for a substantive story arc.  Either through compositions that are scripted to open things up or (perhaps “and”) the confidence of the musicians to improvise on the seeds of the ideas and bring something unexpected to bloom.  Whatever the reason and whatever the intent, there’s a fullness to this music that wasn’t there before.  The sound is much the same, but the ability to express it is dramatically changed.

Your album personnel:  Chad McCullough (trumpet), Ben Dietschi (saxophones), Brian Seligman (guitar), Andrew Oliver (piano), Jesse Dietschi (bass), Tyson Stubelek (drums) and guests:  Casey Nielsen (guitar) and Regina Harris Baiocchi (spoken word poetry).

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp – Amazon

Sloth Racket – Triptych (Luminous Label)

This music is hyperactive and it doesn’t sit still and it’s a whirlwind display of forms of expression and influence, and all of it comes off as serious and fun, both.  But what is easily the best quality of this debut from the quintet Sloth Racket is how they come together at planned landing spots along the way, briefly taking a break from rampant improvisation and chaos.  There is a sense that bandleader Cath Roberts didn’t write a composition so much as simply show the band a map and, pointing at various spots, state, “We’re going to visit here and here and here and spend quality time together, but how we spend the time in between those places is entirely up to each individual.”  Because even in opening track “Crossed Swords,” the glimpse of the blues and a focused harmonic passage and the causation of a groove all come together far too neatly for it not to have been preordained.  The anticipation of that kind of event builds a lovely bit of tension, and in its way, gives the chaos an indirect shape and form in the process.  The effect is even more dramatic on the 20-minute finale “Endgame.”  Very cool.

Your album personnel:  Cath Roberts (baritone sax), Sam Andreae (tenor sax), Anton Hunter (guitar), Seth Bennett (bass) and Johnny Hunter (drums).

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp

Amaro Freitas – Sangue Negro (Tratore)

Pleasant straight-ahead set from pianist Amaro Freitas, bassist Jean Elton and drummer Hugo Medeiros (plus guests).  Nice sprightly bounce to the up-tempo pieces, plenty of moodiness to the slower tunes.  The trio generates a nice chatter between themselves, and its the rhythmic nuance that carries the conversations into compelling directions.  Some Afro-jazz and Latin jazz influences, but the album basically keeps to the center line of jazz territory.  Good stuff.

Your album personnel:  Amaro Freitas (piano), Jean Elton (bass), Hugo Medeiros (drums) and guests:  Eliudo Souza (sax) and Fabinho Costa (trumpet).

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp – Amazon – eMusic

Avant-garde Labor Union – Cosmic Tube and Infinite Skin (Miare Music)

Two saxophonists, two drummers and the kind of music that could set the whole world on fire.  This quartet from the Mie Prefecture of Japan hits the gas pedal from the first note and rarely lets up.  They develop an intriguing drone on “Transgen,” but that’s about as close as they get to slowing things down.  This music lacks subtlety, and that’s a big reason for why it’s so damn enjoyable.

Your album personnel:  Akano Shibahito, Mano Kazuhiko (saxophones) and Miyazaki Yasunori, Miki Isamu (drums)

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp

Stuart McCallum & Mike Walker – The Space Between (Edition Records)

A duo recording between two guitarists, McCallum and Walker, that highlight their strengths and highlights commonalities in perspective that belie their different sounds.  Yes, there’s some indie-rock components here as well as some contemporary jazz fusion… a basic familiarity with each musician will guarantee no surprises there.  But their common practice of being melodically focused and immersing themselves in a train of thought and taking the possibilities of those melodies as far as they can go is why this album comes out as gorgeous as it does.  The balance between acoustic and electric guitar voices adds a nice bit of texture, as does the addition of a string quartet on half of the tracks.  This is the peaceful kind of recording for when the rain is falling outside and the only thing you want to do with your day is sit by the window and watch it come down.

Your album personnel:  Stuart McCallum (acoustic guitar), Mike Walker (electric guitar) and guests:  Laura Senior, Gemma South (violins), Lucy Nolan (viola) and Peggy Nolan (cello).

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp – Amazon

*****

Every now and then I give a rundown of recent releases on the ECM Records label.  They were one of the early advocates of what’s loosely termed Nordic Jazz (typically serene, ambient to the point of flirting with new age or minimalism, and often imbued with folk music from Norway or thereabouts) as well as the even more loosely termed World Jazz (jazz with specific or vague regional folk influences).  In any event, me and the music of ECM Records go way back and some of my very favorite albums were released by the label, so out of fondness if nothing else, every now and then I write up a column like this one and put down a few words about recent releases of note.

Let’s begin.

Giovanni Guidi – Ida Lupino

Giovanni Guidi has got a way of shifting his presence from background to fore without causing the slightest ripple on the surface of the song.  His melodic touch on piano resonates with amazing strength at either end of that spectrum, but it’s how he tempers it with just the right amount of restraint so the lovely harmony of trombonist Gianluca Petrella and clarinetist Louis Sclavis can just keep carrying for every last second.  And when a song calls for throwing some punches, as it does on “Jeronimo,” Guidi is able to step up and still exhibit that same tasteful restraint while getting in some one-two combos.  In a similar vein, drummer Gerald Cleaver keeps his voice on the quieter side.  This isn’t a new thing for him, but it never fails to amaze in the context of how relentless his style can be as proven on other recordings.  Not sure that any one melody on this recording isn’t gorgeous as hell, but what elevates that state of being on Ida Lupino is how the quartet keeps finding new facets to display.

Your album personnel:  Giovanni Guidi (piano), Gianluca Petrella (trombone), Louis Sclavis (clarinet, bass clarinet) and Gerald Cleaver (drums).

Stream two album tracks at the artist’s site.

Released on ECM Records.

Available at:  Amazon

Jakob Bro – Streams

I’m not sure anybody is able to generate a melodic presence quite like guitarist Jakob Bro.  He has a way on instilling a mood upon a recording that’s eerily similar to the way an expert filmmaker can draw in the audience with just the opening sequence of frames.  On this session, Bro returns to a trio format, joined by bassist Thomas Morgan and drummer Joey Baron.  Streams doesn’t quite attain the depth of sound as his “Balladeering trio” of recordings with Bill Frisell and Lee Konitz or the large ensemble project Hymnotic/Salmodisk, but Bro is just as talented at revealing hidden facets in simpler music as he is in the complex.  The trio raises the temperature from time to time, like on “Full Moon Europa,” and sometimes they kick up the most wonderful tunefulness, like on “Shell Pink.”  But for the most part, this is an immersive experience, where melodies are something to just sink into and lose yourself for a very long time.

Your album personnel:  Jakob Bro (guitar), Thomas Morgan (double bass) and Joey Baron (drums).

Listen to an album track on the ECM site.

Released on ECM Records.

Available at:  Amazon

Jack DeJohnette, Ravi Coltrane & Matthew Garrison – In Movement

There’s a bunch of points to make about this excellent recording, but there’s no way anything should be said about it, ever, without first addressing the album’s title-track “In Movement.”  It’s one of the very best tracks to be released all year.  Ravi Coltrane‘s darting melodic lines on sax, Jack DeJohnette‘s susurrant chatter on drums and effects, and the bass and electronics from Matthew Garrison… they combine to create a song that is simultaneously ambient and edgy, soothing and ominous.  Some of it speaks to an old(er)-school sound, back to the In a Silent Way jazz-rock-ambient fusion.  This isn’t completely surprising, being as that DeJohnette recorded with Miles Davis during his fusion period.  But the electronic effects and the rock n’ roll grind that serves as the undercurrent of tension in the song’s latter half speaks of the present day.  That, too, isn’t surprising, since both Coltrane and Garrison are plenty happy to mix things up with forward-thinking adventurism rather than just mimic the sound of their legendary fathers.  And the mix of all these influences on an improvisational piece just feels and sounds like an alternative step forward, of a new direction the ever-evolving jazz form could take.  I want to hear an album from these three where the title-track is the seed planted in each new piece.

Not that there’s anything lacking about the rest of the album.  There’s all kind of lovely tension and fire in their rendition of John Coltrane’s “Alabama,” and they turn up the voltage a couple extra notches and switch out the tension for speed on “Rashied.”  A cover of Earth, Wind and Fire’s “Serpentine Fire” allows for some nice diversions in tempo with a groove.  A rendition of Miles Davis’s “Blue In Green” is the opportunity they take to release their foot from the gas pedal and dive into introspection.  There’s some solid work laid down here, and nothing on the album leaves the impression of something that should have been left on the studio floor.  But all of it pales in comparison to the title-track’s persona.  That alone makes this album worth the price of admission.

Your album personnel:  Jack DeJohnette (drums, piano, electronic percussion), Ravi Coltrane (tenor, soprano & sopranino saxophones) and Matthew Garrison (electric bass, electronics)

Released on ECM Records.

Available at:  Amazon

Nik Bärtsch’s Mobile – Continuum

It’s always pretty easy to assume what you’re gonna get with a Nik Bärtsch recording, and while consistently living up to expectations, he still somehow keeps putting out an album with its own personality.  His newest has him with an old/new ensemble going as Mobile, but there’s overlap with older projects and prior collaborators.  It’s on “Modul 60” that this particular group at this particular time shows what it’s all about.  The guest string quintet insinuates a cadence of slowly rolling waves, and the way that Bärtsch and crew modulate their pointilism-style rhythmic approach so that it keeps its determined pace but comes off more as raindrops softly pelting the surface of the waves, it opens up a view to a new kind of serenity.  It’s an illuminating moment and it alters the context of the entirety of the album… even those moments that are exactly what you’d expect from a Bärtsch project.  And if this synopsis is your introduction to Bärtsch’s music, this is an excellent place to start listening.

Your album personnel:  Nik Bärtsch (piano), Sha (bass clarinet, double bass, clarinet), Kaspar Rast (drums, percussion), Nicolas Stocker (drums, tuned percussion) and guests:  Etienne Abelin (violin), Ola Sendecki (violin), David Schnee (viola), Solme Hong (cello) and Ambrosius Huber (cello).

Released on ECM Records.

Available at:  Amazon

*****

Every now and then I give a rundown of recent releases on the ECM Records label.  They were one of the early advocates of what’s loosely termed Nordic Jazz (typically serene, ambient to the point of flirting with new age or minimalism, and often imbued with folk music from Norway or thereabouts) as well as the even more loosely termed World Jazz (jazz with specific or vague regional folk influences).  In any event, me and the music of ECM Records go way back and some of my very favorite albums were released by the label, so out of fondness if nothing else, every now and then I write up a column like this one and put down a few words about recent releases of note.

Let’s begin.

Wolfert Brederode Trio – Black Ice

There’s an undeniable beauty to this trio set from pianist Wolfert Brederode, double bassist Gulli Gudmundsson and drummer Jasper van Hulten.  It’s moody and it’s tranquil and the lines of melody are drawn out as long as the horizon.  Black Ice falls right into line with a host of modern ECM Records piano trio sessions, perhaps doing the whole ambient jazz thing better than most.  What truly separates the best from the crowd is the ability to instill a huge presence when subtlety and silence are two of the main ingredients.  ECM label-mates, the Marcin Wasilewski Trio are a prime example of how to get that done.  Their music is quiet and peaceful and yet they build a massive tension, as if watching a storm approach from the distance.  The dark cloud banks are moody as hell and the way daylight is refracted off the grey skies is gorgeous and the soft rumble of distant thunder is comforting… but the anticipation of the oncoming violence, of a torrential downpour and shriek of the wind… it’s an ominous feeling, and suddenly peaceful music doesn’t seem like such a refuge anymore.  That’s the kind of presence needed to make something more special than just another pretty album.  I’m not sure Black Ice really accomplishes that.  There’s nothing particularly memorable about the recording.  But as I opened with, the music has an undeniable beauty, and if you’re like me and enjoy a serene ECM piano trio recording for your first music of the day, then I’m sure you’ll enjoy this album as much as I do.  It just doesn’t have much appeal to me other than in that confined scenario.  Consider Black Ice highly recommended, but understand the scope and context which drove the rating.

Your album personnel:  Wolfert Brederode (piano), Gulli Gudmundsson (double bass) and Jasper van Hulten (drums)

Released on ECM Records.

Available at:  Amazon

Dominique Pifarély Quartet – Tracé Provisoire

Now this is what I’m talking about.  Drone and dissonance.  A brisk chatter and a luxuriant sigh.  Melodies thick and bold, and then strung out and warped and wound in odd and curious shapes.  This quartet date led by violinist Dominique Pifarély displays all kinds of personality.  It creates flaws and disturbances and uneasy tones, and all of that (and more) are the ingredients to its arresting beauty.  Pianist Antonin Rayon is just as deft at setting down layers of wavering harmony as he is punching up unconventional melodic lines in a strange approximation of the blues.  Double bassist Bruno Chevillon and drummer François Merville show a remarkable mutability between Nordic Jazz expressions and bursts of bop and swing.  None of this music is straight-ahead by the definition and rules of any idiom in play here, and it shouldn’t have been any other way.  A very cool recording, and definitely one you should think about scooping up.

Your album personnel:  Dominique Pifarély (violin), Antonin Rayon (piano), Bruno Chevillon (double bass) and François Merville (drums).

Released on ECM Records.

Available at:  Amazon

Iro Haarla – Ante Lucem for Jazz Quintet and Symphony Orchestra

The music of harpist-pianist Iro Haarla has received plenty of kind words on this site (and my various other outlets).  Her 2011 release Vespers was listed among this site’s best for that year.  Her ability to get her sound to resonate with such strength even when keeping to expressions that stick to serenity is no small part of her appeal.  Unfortunately, that effect is drowned out by the symphony orchestra that joins up with her quintet on Ante Lucem.  The waves of harmony just overwhelm the quintet, and other than some rare moments, they never rise up to the surface.  Individual players get their voices heard at times.  Saxophonist Trygve Seim is the notable example of this.  His long cries on soprano elevate above the crowd, but this is nothing particularly special… that’s just about soloing.  A Haarla recording at its best is far more than that.  It’s about the ensemble and how it coalesces around everything, including and especially the soloists.  The opening of the third section “And the Darkness Have Not Overcome It” teases the possibility of giving Haarla’s quintet some room to breathe, but it never materializes.  It’s not a bad album.  I enjoyed giving it a spin.  It just doesn’t ever allow for Haarla’s better qualities to stand out.

Your album personnel:  Iro Haarla (piano, harp), Hayden Powell (trumpet), Trygve Seim (soprano & tenor saxes), Ulf Krokfors (double bass), Mika Kallio (drums, percussion), Norrlands Operans Symfoniorkester and Jukka Iisakkila (conductor).

Released on ECM Records.

Available at:  Amazon

Andrew Cyrille Quartet – The Declaration of Musical Independence

There’s lots of old-school ECM sound in here.  Not a surprise, since drummer Andrew Cyrille, and the guitarist in his quartet, Bill Frisell, go back decades with the label.  And for this session, they bring some of their old-school expressionism into today.  There’s the strangely-timed electronic washes and the melodic strikes that suddenly veer off in unexpected directions, and also, naturally, the percussive attack that eclipses any moodiness that had been stockpiled up to that point.  All of it results in some interesting chatter, a conversational style that is anything but conventional and comes from decades of collaborating with diverse sets of musicians and influences.  One of the more intriguing albums released lately by ECM.

Your album personnel:  Andrew Cyrille (drums, percussion), Bill Frisell (guitar), Richard Teitelbaum (synthesizer, piano) and Ben Street (double bass).

Released on ECM Records.

Listen to an album track on the ECM Records site.

Available at:  Amazon

*****