Jun 19 2012
Matt Ulery – “By A Little Light”
It’s a celebratory moment when an artist attempts to grasp a grand vision. We should want that from our artists, that they attempt to synthesize Big Dreams down to expressions of creativity that can be shared with us all. We want to be able to experience the great expanse of a massive idea and gain a sense of the journey it took to get there. The connection with something that is both immense and intangible is like staring into futures and possibilities opened up to us all. These attempts at capturing the epic don’t have to be perfect. Hell, sometimes their imperfections add to their strength, much how a brief slip can make the climb to the mountaintop that much more thrilling and glorious.
Matt Ulery’s By A Little Light is about as close to perfection as one can get.
Spanning two discs, bassist and composer Ulery presents a story that is as much classical as it is jazz, as much theater as it is music. At the heart of the music is the piano trio. Working with two different piano-drummer combos, pianist Rob Clearfield paired with drummer Michael Caskey and pianist Ben Lewis paired with drummer Jon Deitemyer, Ulery starts with the trio and builds up, and out, from there. Adding members of the Eighth Blackbird ensemble, violinist Zach Brock and vocalist Grazyna Auguscik to this mix, Ulery all but guarantees that his music will defy comparison. This is music with a strong identity difficult to put name to. The first disc, subtitled “By a Little Light” is all instrumental. The second disc, subtitled “To the Brim”, is accompanied by vocals. It is an album in two acts.
Disc One sets the stage. Using a blend of classical, jazz, and Old World folk music, Ulery weaves a landscape out of sound and populates it with cities of notes. Even on a tune like the title-track, where it is only the piano trio in action, the texture of the sound gives the impression of more instruments lurking in the background, uncredited and out of sight. Nothing about this music is small. Even the nuances possess a weight that belies their brief moments in the spotlight. Piano is given lots of room to roam and explore, while drums stamp it on the map. When not gingerly tiptoeing through the scene, strings make dreamy pronouncements, while vibes and trumpet shade the edges.
No better representative track for Disc One than “To Lose Your Mind.” Vibes and piano provide a sense of gravity, of two feet planted on the earth, while strings and drums provide the running start and liftoff to flight. On violin, Zach Brock transitions between those two roles, providing at time the sound of footfalls on fresh soil, and at other times, lush notes ethereal as clouds.
The final track on Disc One, “The Miniaturist”, ends with a lullaby, reminiscent of Ulery’s 2010 release Flora.Fauna.Fervor. Piano and vibes meticulously create a silhouette composed of infinite permutations of shading, while bass and drums imbue it with just the faintest sense of motion, that perhaps the silhouette, like a dream come alive, is more than just a shadowy outline.
Disc Two lets the characters develop. Set to a backdrop of soaring woodwinds, brass, and strings, Auguscik sings words of encouragement. The song blossoms with the hope and romance of fairy tales. But fairy tales are also typified by the affliction of dark days, and so when shadows descend upon the composition as it transitions to the next song, it’s almost to be expected. This time it’s Ulery who takes over the role of vocalist. His voice has little range, and it’s sort of brittle; qualities which imbue the music with an eye-opening vulnerability as he sings of his worry of loneliness and worst case scenarios. It makes for one of the album’s biggest successes. After this, the composition returns to the jazz piano trio, and then true to form, it grows organically from there. Joined by strings, alto flute, and bass clarinet, the tune lifts off, returning to its original spot for the song’s conclusion.
Auguscik returns to vocals for the final three tracks (with Ulery providing some accompaniment). They’re beautiful songs, and of particular note is the superb pairing of Tim Munro on alto flute with the bass clarinet of Michael Maccaferri on “To the Brim”, who enter with melodic statements of heartbreaking beauty. Their appearances are only momentary, but it speaks well to Ulery’s talents that he allows his compositions room to breathe such that seemingly minor details and embellishments are allowed to become something greater.
“… allowed to become something greater.” That is By A Little Light in a nutshell.
Your album personnel: Matt Ulery (double bass, voice), Ben Lewis (piano) and Jon Deitmeyer (drums) (Tracks 1-5, 11), Rob Clearfield (piano) and Michael Caskey (drums) (Tracks 6-10, 12), and joined by: Michael Maccaferri (clarinet, bass clarinet), Tim Munro (flute, alto flute), James Davis (trumpet, flugelhorn), Zach Brock (violin), Dominic Johnson (viola), Nicholas Photinos (cello), Matthew Duval (vibraphone, glockenspiel, marimba), and Grazyna Auguscik (vocals).
Released on Dave Douglas’s Greenleaf Music label.
Music from the Chicago scene.
You can purchase the album as MP3, FLAC, or CD at the Greenleaf Music store.
Jan 1 2013
The Best of 2012
Welcome to the Best of 2012.
For each album considered for inclusion, I was looking for it to hit me right in my heart, provoke a strong emotional reaction. I was also looking for it to engage my brain, provide some intrigue or fascination with the music being presented. Extra points were awarded for doing Something Different or building on a premise that embraced the best qualities of creativity. Strong musicianship alone is not enough. Many solid albums didn’t make the list. It literally pains me when I see some of the albums that weren’t included. But I listen to a lot of music, and one of the rare downsides to encountering so much great Jazz is that some of it won’t receive the recognition it deserves. So there you have it.
There is a link to a more formal review following each entry. The text that accompanies each album isn’t a review so much as reminiscences of aspects of the recording I liked when I first heard it and how I still feel about it now. I wasn’t looking to sum any of them up… that’s what reviews are for. Most reviews are accompanied with embedded audio so you can hear some of the music, as well as personnel and label information, links to artist, label, and retail sites, and anything else that seemed relevant/helpful to me at the time.
The Top Albums of 2012:
1. Adam Fairhall – The Imaginary Delta
Released on the SLAM Productions label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
2. Amit Friedman – Sunrise
Released on the Origin Arts label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
3. Omer Avital – Suite of the East
Released on the Anzic Records label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
4. Matt Ulery – By a Little Light
Released on the Greenleaf Music label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
5. Jeremy Siskind – Finger-Songwriter
This album is Self-Produced.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
6. Lynne Arriale – Solo
Released on the Motema Records label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
7. Peggy Lee Band – Invitation
Released on the Drip Audio label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
8. Erik Jekabson – Anti-Mass
The album is Self-Produced, released under Jekab’s Music.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
9. Marc Bernstein – Good People Music
Released on the Blackout Music label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
10. Blommor Inomhus – Blommor Inomhus
This album is Self-Produced.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
11. Pete Robbins – Live in Basel
The album is Self-Produced, released on Robbin’s Hate Laugh Music label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
12. Todd Bishop Group – Little Played Little Bird
Released on the Origin Arts label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
13. Martin Hoper – The Bride
Released on the Hoob Records label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
14. Andy Clausen – Wishbone Suite
Released on the Table & Chairs Music label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
15. Jesse van Ruller Chambertones Trio – The Ninth Planet
Released on the C-String Records label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
16. Todd Marcus – Inheritance
Released on the Hipnotic Records label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
17. Jacob Garchik – The Heavens
The album is Self-Produced, released on Garchik’s own Yestereve Records.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
18. Jessica Lurie – Megaphone Heart
The album is Self-Produced.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
19. Florian Hoefner Group – Songs Without Words
Released on the Origin Arts label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
20. Rebecca Trescher’s Hochzeit Null11 – Sud
Released on the Metropol Musik label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
21. Jeremy Udden – Folk Art
Released on the Fresh Sound Records label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
22. Sunny Kim – Painters Eye
Released on the Sunnyside Records label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
23. Piet Verbist – Zygomatik
Released on the Origin Arts label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
24. Jean Lapouge – Des Enfants
Released on the Musea Records label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
25. Chambr – Freewheel
Released on the F-IRE Collective label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
26. Motian Sickness: The Music of Paul Motian – For the Love of Sarah
The album is Self-Produced.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
27. Miguel Zenon / Laurent Coq Quartet – Rayuela
Released on the Sunnyside Records label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
28. Dialogues Trio w/Julian Siegel – Twinkle Twinkle
Released on the Babel Label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
29. Threads Orchestra – Ranch
The album is Self-Produced.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
30. Beppe di Benedetto 5tet – See the Sky
Released on the TRJ Records label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
An Addendum:
Because it is difficult find everything in a timely fashion and listen to it all, the following two albums would have certainly been included somewhere on the Best of 2012 list had they had my attention at the time I put it together.
You can read more about it here (LINK).
31. Anne Paceo – Yokai
Released on the Laborie Jazz label.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
32. Oskar Schönning – The Violin
The album is Self-Produced.
A Bird is the Worm review here.
These lists are tough.
Cheers.
-Dave
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By davesumner • Recap: Best of 2012 • 0 • Tags: Adam Fairhall, Amit Friedman, Andy Clausen, Anne Paceo, Anzic Records, Babel Label, Beppe di Benedetto, Blackout Music, Blommon Inomhus, C-String Records, Chambr, Drip Audio, Erik Jekabson, F-ire Collective, Florian Hoefner, Fresh Sound New Talent label, Greenleaf Music, Hipnotic Records, Hoob Records, Jacob Garchik, Jazz - Best of 2012, Jean Lapouge, Jeff Cosgrove, Jeremy Siskind, Jeremy Udden, Jesse van Ruller, Jesse van Ruller Chambertones Trio, Jessica Lurie, Julian Siegel, Laborie Jazz, Laurent Coq, Lucas Pino, Lynne Arriale, Marc Bernstein, Martin Hoper, Matt Ulery, Metropol Musik, Miguel Zenón, Motema Records label, Musea Records label, Nancy Harms, Omer Avital, Origin/OA2 Records, Oskar Schonning, Peggy Lee, Pete Robbins, Piet Verbist, Rebecca Trescher, Self-Produced, SLAM Productions, Sunny Kim, Sunnyside Records, Table and Chairs Music, Threads Orchestra, Todd Bishop, Todd Marcus, TRJ Records