2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Chicago free jazz beyond Vandermark and the AACM, May 17, 2005
This review is from: New Folk New Blues (Audio CD)
The eighth recording in 482 Music's Document Chicago series, "New Folk, New Blues" addresses the state of improvised music today in the Chicago area. Saxophonist Scott Rosenberg delivers some heated work outs on tenor and baritone while Anton Hatwich holds down the low end with Vandermark 5 drummer Tim Daisy handling trap set duties. Keyboardist Jim Baker, under-recognized Windy City improviser, splits his duties between fiery linear free jazz pianist and analog keyboard twiddling mad scientist.
The album consists of four collective improvisations that vacillate from one mood to the next with an organic quality that often sounds more composed than improvised. Each long form piece navigates a number of divergent changes through their duration, embracing everything from maniacally swinging freebop and atonal free jazz sturm and drang to pensive bittersweet balladry, hushed pointillistic sound exploration and virtuosic solo cadenzas.
Although each piece is collaboratively improvised there is a strong sense of cohesion and conceptual clarity found between the artists. The quartet is as focused on subtle sound manipulation as they are fervent collective improvisation. Not ones to overpower the listener with needless clamor, these four know how to play "out" without sacrificing nuance.
Rosenberg favors a post-Braxtonian saxophone technique that is especially thrilling on baritone. Baker has an awesome technique on acoustic piano, but also plays old school analog synthesizer on half the album as well. Delivering blips, beeps and distorted pitch bends, Baker's squiggly, animated analog synthesizer lines with their B-movie/sci-fi ambiance blend well with Rosenberg's saxophone bleats and shrieks to make for a winning combination. Daisy and Hatwich are a limber but tight rhythm team capable of blisteringly fast free bop excursions as well as subtle, introspective textural exploration.
Summit meetings like this are not always a guaranteed success, but here these four demonstrate their listening abilities as readily as their blowing skills for a boisterous free jazz album that is a notch above the rest.
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