Dec 27 2017
Best of 2017 #11: Paul Jones – “Clean” (Outside In Music)
Though primarily a work of modern jazz and chamber, Clean is informed by the music of Steve Reich, Kendrick Lamar and Philip Glass… influences that bleed into the music with a remarkable subtlety. Their effect is revealed in harmonic roll-outs, pulsing rhythms, a narrative-like melodic development, and moments of stunning minimalism at the eye of a storm… an undercurrent of influence like an untold strategy guiding the hand of active participants. It’s an effect not unlike that of an author mapping out a storyline, which is an apt metaphor in light of the structure Paul Jones provides his excellent 2017 recording. Full of recurring themes, dramatic plot twists, and inter-character tensions, there’s an abiding sense of novella in sonic form. There are countless jaw-dropping moments of beauty on this album, and at times, it seems like it could go on forever… and then it’s suddenly over, far too soon. This recording fell just outside the official Top Ten, but there’s every argument to be made that not only did it deserve to be included, but that it earned a slot in the top half. Just a wonderful album.
Music from NYC.
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This final installment of The Reason Why trilogy ends like it began… singing with joy, dancing to a groove, and reflecting the vision that the world of music is a vast place that should be celebrated for its diversity even while treating the influences as if only a couple notes can traverse the distances between. Goran Kajfeš Subtropic Arkestra morphs between sounds that trace to Swedish, Turkish, Balkan, New York, South American, African and UK roots, and it’s anybody’s guess whether it’s gonna get expressed as a psychedelic groove, a minimalist drone, a pop music smile or anything else in between and out to the fringes. Kajfeš has got his trumpet contributing to a number of projects, all quite different from one another, and that creative elasticity is why he’s one of the most exciting musicians on the modern scene. Every one of this trilogy’s albums is outstanding.
A melody from Ron Miles is moonlight distilled down to sonic form. There are times when he exhales a melody and he’s the only object in the sky. And then there are those times when the gravitational force of his presence pulls an ensemble around him like a sea of stars. The cornetist’s 2017 release I Am A Man puts those talents to excellent use, and the hall-of-fame cast of guitarist Bill Frisell, pianist Jason Moran and drummer Brian Blade happily fall into his orbit. The blues are an ever-present force of change on the recording, regardless whether the piece is an old-school ballad or a new-school burner. Miles has a lyrical touch to where he gets a sound to just hang in air, allowing patience and pauses heavy with emotion to get them to radiate with everything they’ve got before putting the next notes in play. Whether on cornet or trumpet, the sense is that here is a musician who has spent a lifetime immersing himself in his instrument and the creativity inside to make it manifest, and that impression bleeds into every note. A wonderful album from an amazing musician.
The fact that Amir ElSaffar seemed to have been building to this moment makes the result no less stunning or the statement any less epic. Where past recordings gave the impression of modern jazz and Middle Eastern musics locked in dance, a give and take of lead and follow, with Not Two, the musics are as one, as if a strong embrace led to a new degree of unity. The trumpeter grows his Two Rivers Ensemble into the 17-strong Rivers of Sound orchestra, with the effect being that the overall sound is given a greater weight, but that the nuances can be more fully explored without straying from the guiding vision. ElSaffar’s orchestra makes it seem like an everyday occurrence for oud and saxophones, buzuk and trumpet, and santur and cello to mingle in the same crowd and communicating in their own, unique languages while transmitting a communal meaning. They also display a nifty talent for adding layers in a way that creates thrilling surges of intensity. There are moments on this album that are as powerful as anything that came out in 2017.
Dec 28 2017
Best of 2017 #10: Hvalfugl – “By” (Self-Produced)
Music from Aarhus, Denmark.
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By davesumner • Recap: Best of 2017 • 0 • Tags: Aarhus (Denmark), Hvalfugl, Jazz - Best of 2017, Self-Produced