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Ben Allison
Quiet Revolution
NEWVELLE RECORDS 005
Newvelle Records is a vinyl-only
jazz label that sells its audiophile
pressings on a subscription basis, a
business model that promises highend
sound while assuming an equal
level of excellence from the music.
And if bassist Ben Allison’s Quiet
Revolution is typical of the rest of the label’s first five-album season,
Newvelle succeeds on both fronts.
Employing a drummer-less trio and drawing from the compositions
of Jim Hall and Jimmy Giuffre, the album is a delightfully intimate
affair. Not only is the soundstage exceptionally vivid, but between Ted
Nash’s understated saxophone blowing and Steve Cardenas’ preference
for unamplified guitars, the dynamics are as natural as they are low-key.
That pays off in the depth of interplay. Hall’s “Waltz New” shifts from
a unison lead to an intricate collective improvisation, with echoes of
“Someday My Prince Will Come” swirling through intertwining lines.
The unadorned comity of the playing is so convincing that the rendition
of “Love Theme From Spartacus” comes almost as a shock—not because
it veers from the Hall/Giuffre concept, but because the overdubbed saxophones
and clarinet shatter the illusion that three stellar musicians were
jamming in your living room.
—J.D. Considine
Quiet Revolution: All Across The City; Move It; Waltz New; Sleeping Tiger; Pony Express; Careful; The
Train And The River; Lookin’ Up; The Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction; Love Theme From Spartacus.
Personnel: Ben Allison, bass; Ted Nash, saxophones, clarinet; Steve Cardenas, guitar.
Ordering info: newvelle-records.com
Enoch Smith Jr.
The Quest: Live
At APC
MISFITME MUSIC
½
When Enoch Smith Jr. is not busy
with his day job at Allentown
Presbyterian Church in New Jersey,
the musician finds time to nurse a
blossoming career as a bandleader
outside of the house of faith. The
Quest: Live At APC is Enoch’s fourth album, all of which have been
released on his own label, Misfitme Music. On this record, his strong suit
is blending the sounds of gospel with a traditional jazz trio.
Smith’s piano playing is at the forefront of the opening number,
“Searching For God,” a blues joint that cooks into something special
around the three-minute mark. It’s difficult to imagine how one person
could play the piano parts, as Enoch’s dueling hands create and release
tension during the most involved portions of the track.
Enoch once wrote a column for DownBeat that stated, “It’s my belief
that jazz would not exist in the form it does today if not for black gospel
music and its contributors.” It would be hard to counter this statement
after listening to “Open Your Eyes, You Can Fly,” a stripped-down cover
of the fusion tune by Chick Corea and Neville Potter. If nothing else, the
inspiration of gospel is alive and well in this jazz release. —Chris Tart
The Quest–Live At APC: Searching For God; Open Your Eyes You Can Fly; With Me (Intro); With Me;
Creator; Home; Jesus Loves Me; The Quest; Love Lude; Wheels Up; Jesus Loves Me (Alternate Take). (41:00)
Personnel: Enoch Smith Jr., piano; Noah Jackson, Mimi Jones, bass; Andrew Atkinson, John Davis,
drums; Sarah Elizabeth Charles, Emily Braden, voice.
Ordering info: misfitme.com
Moutin Factory
Quintet
Deep
BLUJAZZ
Twin brothers François and Louis
Moutin are the pulsing heart of The
Moutin Factory, a lithe post-bop
quintet whose new album, Deep,
welds soaring optimism to harmonic
nuance and rhythmic daring.
From its tempestuous opening, “Love Stream,” to its probing closer,
“In The Name Of Love,” the disc is full of tracks that are never far from
the point of sublimation. The spark is obvious on tunes like “Hell’s
Kitchen,” which bustles with the energy of the titular Manhattan neighborhood,
and “Shift,” with its hive-like frenzy. But there’s also a palpable
energy to slower songs like “Hope Street” and especially “In The Name,”
which, after a soulful unaccompanied bass solo, derives its fuel from the
piercing tone of Manu Codjia’s guitar.
Saxophonist Christophe Monniot and pianist Jean-Michel Pilc contribute
dynamic solo voices throughout, but the most impressive element
of this album is the band’s ability to cohere so tightly as they hurdle
through space. For pure fun, check out the bass feature “Fat’s Medley,”
a reverently tongue-in-cheek homage to Mr. Waller that accelerates to
light-speed.
—Brian Zimmerman
Deep: Love Stream; Hope Street; Fat’s Medley; Exploded View; A Soothing Thrill; Hell’s Kitchen; Shift;
Bliss; In The Name Of Love. (63:50)
Personnel: François Moutin, bass; Louis Moutin, drums; Manu Codjia, guitar; Jean-Michel Pilc, piano;
Christophe Monniot, saxophones.
Ordering info: blujazz.com
Jorge Rossy
Stay There
PIROUET 3096
Barcelona native Jorge Rossy continues
his fascinating career arc
with both his fourth album as
a leader and his recorded debut
on vibraphone. His Rossy Vibes
Quintet consists of three close
peers. Rossy has known tenor saxophonist
Mark Turner, guitarist Peter Bernstein and double bassist
Doug Weiss for over 25 years. Veteran drummer Al Foster, with whom
Weiss has been playing since 1995, provides a solid foundation for this
atypical instrumentation.
Stay There features seven Rossy originals plus Foster’s charming
“Pauletta” (with its sinuous saxophone line), Guillermo Klein’s flowing
“Artesano” (dedicated to the bandleader by the Argentine pianist
and composer) and “The Newcomer,” a relaxed piece penned by pianist
Mercedes Rossy, Jorge’s late sister.
“W Waltz” boasts an extended solo that showcases Rossy’s clean percussion
style and Bernstein’s keen comping approach before the guitarist
embarks on a thoughtful exploration of his own. The title track closes
out the album with a perhaps wistful grace of five veteran players who
are happily and wholly at ease with one another. —Yoshi Kato
Stay There: Who Knows About Tomorrow; Portrait; Artesano; Blessed; Mark’s Mode; The Newcomer;
W Waltz; Pauletta; Mmmyeah; Stay There. (51:36)
Personnel: Jorge Rossy, vibes, marimba; Mark Turner, tenor saxophone; Peter Bernstein, guitar; Doug
Weiss, bass; Al Foster, drums.
Ordering info: pirouet.com
FEBRUARY 2017 DOWNBEAT 73