May 30 2016
Recommended: Isis Giraldo – “Padre”
What makes the Isis Giraldo music adaptation of her father’s poetry so captivating can be traced to her specific delivery of this kaleidoscopic display of sound. More often than not, when a musician puts a wide spectrum of elements and influences into play, the resulting motion is one that sweeps the listener away on a journey. But with Padre, the pianist & composer develops an immersive experience, one where the ear is locked in place, and gets drowned in imagery while in that stationary position… not unlike watching a movie while melting into a comfy theater seat. In this instance, the movie is framed by straight-ahead and free jazz, Latin rhythms, gospel harmonies, pop music confections, rock music edges, and all the other, barely perceptible influences that, in combination, create the dramatic and resonant effect that is the linchpin of the cinematic experience.
Arguably, the representative piece of the album is a suite titled simply “I, II, III.” Actually, I can’t even confirm that it is, in fact, intended to behave as a suite. And yet, the way Giraldo constructs the flow and bonds from one part to the next and back again, the three consecutive tracks behave as a cohesive unit. Furthermore, the way she lets loose with both compositions and ensemble direction adds further evidence to the existence of a story arc within the confines of the greater album vision. “I” begins with a contemplative section that suddenly breaks from its reveries and shouts its thoughts to the skies. This, in turns, leads to the voices of “II” floating in an ambient drone before building up to the space-y melodic effects of one of Radiohead’s dreamier tunes. And how that leads into the swooning “III,” which, in turn, implodes from its own intensity, a sharp flame burning bright before fading out in embers… that’s the kind of lyrical scene-change that’s got all the ingredients for sonic addiction.
“Tus Ojos” is a comforting whisper and “Tormento” is perhaps a worry that not everything will be alright, but in the context of the recording, their straight-forward delivery shows that the emotional impact of these songs is attributable to more than just the dizzying flight pattern changes of soaring melodies. On the other hand, it’s hard not to fall hard for the album’s more eccentric tunes, like “Improvisation” and its parade march through non-linear space or “Trees” and the way it makes a torrential downpour of rhythm and warped melodic fragments as welcoming as a gentle mist on a hot day.
These are just a few examples of the music on this truly enchanting album.
Your album personnel: Isis Giraldo (piano, vocals), Ruben Dario Giraldo (poems), Jane Chan (cello), Simon Millerd (trumpet), Mike Bjella (clarinet, sax), Kai Basanta (drums), Ben Dwyer (bass) and Ryan Brower, Felicity Williams, Thom Gill, Ghislain Aucoin, Robin Dann (voices).
This Self-Produced album was released in 2015.
Listen to more album tracks on the artist’s Bandcamp page.
Jazz from the Montreal, Quebec scene.
I don’t know if they use the term “slush pile” anymore, but back when I was actively sending out queries of my own to publishers and agents to get them to take a look at one of my fiction novels, the backlog of unsolicited manuscripts would get thrown onto a (literal) stack of other such manuscripts… termed, industry-wide, the “slush pile.” Every now and then, a junior editor or agent would randomly pull a manuscript off the pile and give it a read just to see if a little gem had walked through the door unbeknownst to everyone. It was pretty much a Hail Mary for both author and editor/agent/publisher alike.
Rather captivating session from guitarist Matt Gold and drummer Nate Friedman (plus guest Ben Schmidt-Swartz sitting in on one track on tenor sax). More post-rock than post-bop, their approach to song structure is to merely hint at a catchy melody then watch variations of it quickly spread like hot gossip. And this leads to the album’s winning characteristic, which is the duo’s ability to maintain cohesion-in-the-moment as they navigate a meandering path. That kind of focus on the immediacy of things is why it’s so very easy to get lost in these songs and not really care where you or it is going. Nice addition of acoustic guitar for some sonic balance. Also, it’s refreshing when a musician/band enters the room, says only exactly what they’ve got on their mind, then immediately turns off the lights. This album gets that accomplished in under thirty minutes, and is stronger for its succinctness.
Gotta say, I always appreciate when musicians use their debut to relate all the Big Ideas that have been bouncing around in their heads in the lead-up to their inaugural session in the drivers seat. If they’re even remotely up to the task, it typically renders an album that has all kinds of little surprises and bursts of inspiration. It also tends to lack cohesiveness and its share of potholes along the road from first note to last. That, however, is a big part of the fun. And besides, when a musician steps up the plate on their debut, you’re more concerned with their stance and that they’re taking decent cuts… not the box score. On his debut, pianist Michael Malis definitely gets in his share of quality swings, and this fun recording has more than its share of inspired moments and surprises. There’s some straight-ahead (both old- and new-school), some avant-garde and free moments and some passages that dive into classical areas… and he pretty frequently switches things up between those forms of expression within the duration of one track. Definitely worth checking out, and a promising sign for future projects. Joining the pianist are bassist Ben Rolston and drummer Stephen Boeghold.
A pleasant set of songs that anchor themselves to the heart of a melody and never wander too far from that central place. Guitarist Vierset was aiming for the singer-songwriter action on this recording, and some covers of Nick Drake, plus some originals inspired by some favorite musicians are what comes of it. The originals are far better than the covers, though that’s gonna have most to do with the extreme difficulty of providing a new view of the Drake originals. But overall, it’s a nice, laid-back set of tunes that’s easy to ease into. Joining the guitarist are soprano saxophonist Mathieu Robert, cellist Marine Horbaczewski, bassist Yannick Peeters and drummer Yves Peeters.
Plenty of expressiveness from this duo + 1 set from saxophonist Emiliano Vernizzi, pianist Alessandro Sgobbio and drummer Nick Wight. Each tune seems to begin as a tightly wound ball, and sometimes the trio lets it come apart in wild, dramatic directions and other times they keep things pulled in tight and wrapped around a fiery intensity. When they go with the former approach, the song is typically straight-ahead modern with indie-rock influences, and when they go with the latter approach, it’s a chamber jazz sound. It’s the latter category that marks the strongest tracks, but the shifting between the two states of volatility and solemnity go along way to binding the album up into something exciting and satisfying.
The counterbalance of warm tones and a mournful delivery are what gives this five song recording its appeal. Trumpeter Pedersen, alto saxophonist Linsey Wellman, double bassist Joel Kerr and drummer Eric Thibodeau maintain a nice and easy pace that doesn’t hold back on generating some serious feel. Thick, tangled harmonies are the album’s strong point, but unraveling them with the occasional blast of dissonance adds a delightful bit of contrast at some well-placed moments. Also, bonus points for constructing an EP that remains focused while still providing the space for the artists to flesh ideas out as they happen.
The quintet 
There is a magnetic charm to Au Pire, un Bien that is easy to fall for. Guitarist
Jun 5 2016
Recommended: Baeshi Bang, revisiting vintage K-pop
The range of expressions is likely to guarantee that some tracks will sit better with your ears than others. That’s something that can be said about most projects by most bands, but this quintet’s willingness to vastly expand their perspective on the original source of their inspiration increases the likelihood of that effect. It was something I encountered myself. That said, there were several tracks found in their output that I really took to. Add that to the interesting theme of the project, and, well, I really wanted to post something about this project.
They’ve got a new album out, Vintage K-Pop Revisited, released on the Buda Musique label. Their first album, Old School K-Pop Revisited, was a Self-Produced recording released back in 2014. The two albums share some compositions, but it does appear from available information found online that they are different renditions recorded in separate years.
The personnel are: Etienne de la Sayette (tenor sax, flute, clavioline, gayageum), Victor Michaud (French horn, electronic organ), François Chesnel (piano, hohner bass), Loïc Réchard (guitar) and Stefano Lucchini (drums).
There’s all kinds of opportunities out there to listen while deciding whether to purchase the album.
Here’s an embed of some album tracks off their newest release, which you can find on the Buda Musique Soundcloud page…
You can listen to more music on the Baeshi Bang Soundcloud page as well as their Bandcamp page (linked to below).
Also, on the Baeshi Bang site, they have a page where you can listen to their versions and the Bae Ho originals side-by-side, which is pretty cool. Here’s a LINK to that page.
You can buy their first album on Bandcamp (LINK).
Their most recent album is on Amazon (LINK).
And here’s a nifty video with an album track from their latest. The song is called “Ilchul,” but it also seems to be called “Sunrise” on the album…
*****
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By davesumner • Jazz Recommendations - 2016 releases • 0