Customer Reviews

In Pursuit

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Like Ari Hoenig and Jean-Michel Pilc, McCaslin keeps the time open, but with more than a trio. No head/solo/head forms. Although he sometimes plays 'too many notes', it's in more of a Coltrane wall-of-sound modal way. The compositions give a warm homey feel reminiscent of String Cheese Incident, almost anthem-like, but in a good way. I've only sampled his other albums, but this seems much more successfully impressionistic. My fave of the year so far.

Donny McCaslin (tenor s. and flutes) leads a sextet gathering David Binney (alto s.), Ben Monder (guitar), Scott Colley (bass), Antonio Sanchez (drums) and Pernell Saturnino (percussion).

the first song "a brief tale" is a great intro with a tenor-percussion duet.

the third cut, "madonna" is "binneyesque". ("young lion" of alto saxophone david binney is also the producer of this lovely album)

in the fourth cut, "sea of expectancy" ben monder leads the song but it's not "monderesque". mccaslin's flute, and binney's alto extend the music beyond expectancies...

after this lovely balad, an electrified and avantgarde cut, "in pursuit" exhibits the energic side of this extremely talented band.

"village natural" sounds like a latin and even like a david sanchez song. latin effects arise from the use of percussion in general and from the melodic lines partly throughout the album. after a short and catchy song "send me a postcard", latin effects make its top in the eighth cut, "fast brazil".

the last song "festival in 3 parts" is a long and modernist farewell.

all are original. all are beautifull. enjoy them...

Donny McCaslin is a charter member of the David Binney club of knotty modern jazz compositions, but McCaslin also has a strong catchy streak. "In Pursuit" chases and catches some hooks and has a lot of interesting playing along the way. McCaslin has David Binney on alto, Ben Monder on guitar, Scott Colley on bass, Antonio Sanchez on drums, and Pernell Saturnino on percussion. The music is mixed to sound rich and full. The songwriting is all by McCaslin, and they're good songs. "Fast Brazil" is a highlight that McCaslin re-recorded on "Recommended Tools". Like his newer discs, this 2007 CD from McCaslin is quite good, and is recommended.

This CD was a great disk, i thoroughly enjoyed it. Seems like every track on the CD is great, from the start to the finish i was astounded by the level musicianship of the cats playing on this record.

To be 100% true i was first interested in this project as i am a big fan of Ben Monder and when i found out that Antonio Sanchez was also on this album i knew i had to buy it. After receiving the album i would have to say i am now a fan of everyone on this cut, obviously McCaslin is the featured musician throughout the songs but everyone had a nice chunk or two on the tracks where they get to go wild.

Stand out tracks were in my opinion:
Descarga- a really fun tune that's very well arranged and has some phenomenal soloing on it.
Madonna- a slower haunting tune that's got a great build and is a great showcase of the progressive thoughts that these cats are having.
Sea of Expectancy- the flavor of Ben Monder really shines through in this one starting with an ambient feeling that builds very well.
Fast Brazil- a Metheny-esque tune that just feels really great on this cd with a really interesting arrangement.

Like i said everyone on this platter really plays well and their personality shines through on every single track, calling it the Donny McCaslin Group almost downplays how much he lets the other musicians personalities shine through. Well arranged. Well written. I love it, pick it up now.

I haven't heard D.McCaslin before, just bought this CD. I find it beautiful. The music is varied, interesting to listen to, and very beautiful.

I originally rated this 4 stars, but the more I listened the more it grew no me, so I'm switching to 5 stars. I highly recommend this CD. the more you listen to it, the more you'll like it.
Here is my original review->
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In Pursuit is the first Donny McCaslin CD I've heard. I thought the album was a great foundation for what I hope will lead to more albums by this group of musicians. McCaslin and the guitar player, Monder have great chemistry on the album which is highlighted on the title track where they chase each other with simultaneous frenetic solos. There is some great Sax harmony on the 3rd track Madonna where the alto sax player, Binney and McCaslin play intertwining melodies. There are two things, which keep this album from being a 5-star masterpiece. At times the songs don't sound cohesive. It is difficult to blend saxes & guitars without a piano, and at times the sound doesn't blend so well. A strong bass line is needed to meld it together, and the bass line seems to be absent or barely audible on many of the tracks. Also at times McCaslin over-dominates goes off on a blowing session with just him and the percussionists. McCaslin is, in my opinion the premiere sax player right now, and although I love hearing him wail, I would have preferred to hear more dialog between him Monder & Binney (while being supported by the percussionists).
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After a listening to this CD more and more, the only flaw (and its a very minor flaw) I find it it is that Scott Colley should have a more dominant bass line to meld together the different parts. I'm not knocking Scott, I've heard him on other CDs and he's a great player. He just wasn't given a big enough role in this one.