Jair-Rohm Parker Wells, His Electric Bass and Trio Live

This morning I do my review after a significant snowfall has hit our area overnight. It effects nothing in terms of my review-writing, except it seems pretty white outside my window.

We look today at a trio led by electric bassist Jair-Rohm Parker Wells, live in Philadelphia, 2008. Brotherly Love in Philadelphia (Ayler DL-101) is a good contribution to the Ayler download-only series. For $10 you get a full download plus all the CD art for printing out.

It's Jair-Rohm plus Elliot Levin on tenor and flute, Eric Slick on drums. Mr. Levin recites some rather surreal verse now and again, but it is not the central focus of the set. Instead you get some very extroverted out bass conjuring, funk-to-free settings well covered by Eric Slick's heated drumming and some excellently fired-up tenor from Elliot Levin. Levin has an appealingly gruff open sound on his horn and the three together get into some rock-funk jamming that builds up plenty of steam.

I rather like this one. It took a few listens but it's all there. Go to www.ayler.com and click on the "Download-Only Releases" to pull up the album.

John Scofield Sounds Terrific On "New Morning" DVD

I am afraid I am guilty. I am guilty of taking guitarist John Scofield for granted. That is, I WAS until I checked out his new DVD New Morning: The Paris Concert (Inakustik 6478-1). I've always thought of him as a very good, important stylist in the rock-funk-fusion mode, and of course he is that. The DVD, a long set with his quartet live at the New Morning club in Paris last year, lays out, song for song, the case for Sco' as the complete jazz soloist.

First off, the quartet. They are in the pocket. They get a giant kick in the butt from drummer Bill Stewart, who swings like a daemon, with the kind of kicking accents Elvin Jones and Jack DeJohnette did and do so well, only it's Bill's personal amalgam of what can be done. His bass drum and ride cymbal work hard throughout, putting the swing into high gear. Bassist Ben Stewart lays into that pocket too. The two together make for a formidable team! Relative newcomer pianist-organist Michael Eckroth drives and solos with taste and fire and makes for a great foil to the Sco' presence.

Next the pieces. You get bop standards like "Steeplechase" and "Woody "N You" plus originals that have modern connotations, some rock-funk played with fire, some movingly poignant balladry and a soundscape feature for the more electric side of Scofield.

The man of the hour is most definitely John S. He gets a beautiful electric bluesy tone, plays changes like he was born to it, and brings out the full dimensions of who he is as a guitarist. As you watch and listen over the more-than-two-hours of the DVD, it becomes increasingly clear that Sco' really has it. And his band makes the kinetics that much more supercharged.

This is a wonderful disk. Absolutely recommended! Encore!

Adam Haworth Stevens Scores with Solo Debut "We Live On Cliffs"

I don't usually cover alt folk-pop but today I have something. It's the first solo album by the singer-songwriter of Two Gallants, Adam Haworth Stevens. We Live On Cliffs (Saddle Creek) has some nicely quirky folk-rock songs with plenty of interesting acoustic and electric accompaniment, lyrics worth thinking about and the good vocal presence of Mr. Stevens.

Comparisons don't come readily to mind, which argues for his originality. His is a new voice on the scene and the music has just enough edge to it that it blows away the slick pop that is so all-pervasive out there. Thank you Saddle Creek for putting out this worthy music. And thanks Adam for coming up with it.

Universe Zero and Their Intriguing Album "Heresie"

Belgian enclave Universe Zero crafts a highly original concatenation of rock drive, expanded-tonality modern-classical part writing, doom drone (without the drone), minimalist cyclicality and the feel for long form that Zappa put across in the pioneering of such a hybrid music. They don't sound like a Zappa group, though. The way they combine distinctively long wind and string lines that contrast with drums, keys, etc. counterlines puts them in a class all their own. The passages of contrapuntal writing are quite exciting; the level of compositional invention is high. All this for a rock outfit? Not just any rock outfit. I doubt there are many bands that could match the sustained pitch of sophisticated composition-performance on continual display. They don't improvise much. OK so you can't have everything and it's not meant to be a jam, surely.

Some of it sounds Stravinskian, some does not, but it is all weighty music.

The foregoing applies to their recently reissued album Heresie (Cuneiform), which originally came out more than 30 years ago. There are four long pieces and the cumulative effect is really quite overpowering (in the good sense). The tracks have been remixed and though I've never heard the original version, I must say I am impressed with the sharp focus and clarity of the sound stage.

The masterpieces of this genre are not many. Zappa's "Music for Violin and Compact Orchestra" with Jean Luc Ponty (from around 1968-69) was no doubt the first. Heresie is another. It is monumental. Thank you Cuneiform for putting this into our heads again!

Ana Popovic, An Evening at Trasimeno Lake DVD

Ana Popovic plays some mean blues-rock guitar. And her voice is strong, a little like early Bonnie Raitt in the growl and fire department. If you already know this, then you'll have some idea what her recent DVD An Evening at Trasimeno Lake (ArtisteXclusive 001) is like.

Ms. Popovic puts on a good show. And that's what she does for this full DVD of a night (two plus hours) at Italy's beautiful Trasimeno Lake. She uses an eight-piece lineup for some of the numbers; other times it's her working quartet and they put it all together with her.

Most of the time she presides from the stage with her Strat, and gets off some hot licks; she also plays several numbers on an acoustic. Either way she pleases.

The songs are strong, the sound mix is quite good, the atmosphere is dynamic and the camera work is very well sequenced.

Is this blues, you might ask? From a strictly academic viewpoint, some of the songs are blues, many are blues-drenched rock numbers. It's the chord changes that don't always fall in line with traditional blues form. It's all in the categories we use, and what counts ultimately is the music, right? So if you don't expect Muddy Waters and listen to the music on its own terms, you'll be fine.

This gives you a very good introduction to Ana playing and singing the songs from a good cross-section of her book. Confirmed converts to the Popovic sound will also no doubt appreciate this one. It's a good way to while away a couple of hours. Recommended.

Gene Pritsker and Sound Liberation's First

Anyone who reads this blog knows that there have been a number of review postings on composer-performer Gene Pritsker and his ensemble Sound Liberation. Today a look at the first Sound Liberation release from a few years back (self titled, no label listed).

It's not quite as excellent as the later releases. That's understandable. Gene and the band were finding their voice. Actually they had found it, a most unusual combination of hip hop, bebop, rock shred, show tunes, punk, funk and classical (both quotations and resituations of the standard and not-so-standard repertoire), and original contemporary compositional elements. There's also some very nice guitar work here. So they had found their voice, but were in a process of extending that unique combinatorial ethos and further developing the songwriting.

The resituations are well thought-out. The combinations are well integrated into a fresh and invigoratingly singular context. The end result is something very compelling. I would recommend starting with the VRE Suite, then for contrast, the second Sound Liberation disk. Finally, check this one out as the basis for the later things. Sound Liberation's view, MUSIC FIRST. Then, if you like, slap some labels on it. I totally agree with that!

Bill Bruford's Summerfold Collection

We continue with the second volume of the Bill Bruford retrospective. The first installment discussing volume one was posted earlier (see August 24, 2010 entry on this blog). This concluding release, “The Summerfold Collection” (Summerfold), covers Bruford’s recordings under his own name from 1987-2008. The emphasis during this period shifts away from vocals and guitars. Keyboard-horn ensembles and a well conceived brand of Fusiony sounds dominate these sides. With two loaded CDs in the set, there is much music. Generalization ends up being a little diffuse as a result. Suffice to say that Bruford’s drumming is the key element here. The compositions and arrangements do not function as a simple foil for a set of drum solos however. The music is subtle and well put together and the drumming is fully integrated into the routines. The drumming is without cliche and gives testimony to the creative musical mind at work.

It is the work with the bands Yes and King Crimson that gave rise to his reputation. It is by way of these latter recordings that he fulfilled the promise of his talent and showed himself a very productive, capable leader and musical conceptualist. Those who enjoyed his work with others will most certainly not be disappointed with the more personal side of his music here. Those coming to his music for the first time will be pleased with the wealth and quality of music offered. Good sailing to Mr. Bruford in his retirement. He’s deserved it.

Originally posted March 24, 2009 at www.gapplegate.com/musicalblog.html.