Feb 1, 2013
I am not too familiar with the way in which musicians work with labels, or how long it takes before they can get their material released, but I am perplexed that pianist Kris Davis manages to release two albums within a few months time on two different labels, and more importantly, that both are of a very high qualitative level. The RIDD Quartet further consists of Jeff Davis on drums, Jon Irabagon on sax and Reuben Radding on bass. This album is not unlike “Rye Eclipse”, although it is more transparent, more accessible, less urgent in its need to tell the story as its predecessor. Many of the compositions have the same abstract and emotional quality of her other recent album. But this is of course a quartet album, not Kris Davis and band. Jon Irabagon I find a revelation on this album. To be honest, I thought his “Outright” album, released earlier this year, was a little over-ambitious, yet here his tone, free lyricism and emotional drive are excellent, not of the same level of Malaby, though, but really strong. Radding is as good as we know him and so is Jeff Davis, and both complement each other well. The second track, “Sky Circles”, starts out quite slowly and gentle, yet it gradually starts building intensity and momentum. Whether it’s slow emotional explorations as on the title track (which does not sound like an avalanche at all, by the way), or a more intense and raw approach as on the beginning “The Eye And The Telescope”, the four musicians manage to have a quite unique coherent and creative angle, with introspective and expansive moods alternating, exploring sound interactions and rhythmic invention. The stylistical elements used are subtle : repetitive piano string pluckings, or repetitive sax phrases, come and go, as do melodies and themes, and so does the volume, and the instruments, but all very subtly, creating slight differences and changes, nothing abrupt, yet full of little surprises that make this quite a great listen. I like it a lot!
stef
Feb 1, 2013
Fiction Avalanche is the debut recording of a formidable young collective, the RIDD Quartet. Pianist Kris Davis, saxophonist Jon Irabagon, bassist Reuben Radding and drummer Jeff Davis are bandleaders at the forefront of a new Brooklyn scene, one which subtly incorporates the vagaries of myriad genres and styles into new avenues for exploration. Consisting of ten collectively composed tunes, these stylistically cohesive works veer between dulcet sentimentality and unfettered aggression, modulating from one emotional extreme to the other—often in the same piece. The quartet understands the value of restraint however; keen listening and an empathetic rapport embolden their dynamic transitions with a poised focus that many collectives lack. A singular artist on the rise, Kris Davis’s neo-classical aesthetic blurs the line between restless impressionism and aleatoric invention. While turbulent salvoes are unleashed in climactic passages, it is her ability to summon disquieting lyrical fragments that reveals her true talent. Her euphonious refrains on “Paoli” are sublime, but it is the tortuous filigrees on “Sky Circles” and “Blue Cry,” alternating between atonal patterning and poetic introspection, that are most striking. As a key member of bassist Moppa Elliott’s Mostly Other People Do The Killing, Jon Irabagon embraces every aspect of the tradition, from featherweight balladry to coruscating skronk. A sonic extremist, his capacity for transposing dissonant multiphonics and undulating overtones into tuneful phrases is demonstrated on “Sky Circles” and the vociferous “Monkey Catcher.” His keening cries yield strangely appealing harmonies when combined with Davis’ tinkling, harpsichord-like note clusters on pieces like “The Five Ways.” Reuben Radding’s robust tone and nimble phrasing makes a complementary pair with Jeff Davis, whose colorful accents and vigorous rhythms gracefully negotiate fluctuating dynamics and rubato rhythms of indeterminate meter and tempo. A true collective, the conventional roles of soloist and accompanist are in continuous flux, allowing Radding and Davis greater freedom. Periodically repeated thematic motifs act as harmonic anchors; knotty piano arpeggios and circuitous saxophone cadences provide fleeting melodies as pliable bass and drums generate propulsive forward momentum. Resounding with fragments of bittersweet melancholy and mellifluous lyricism, punctuated by escalating thickets of caterwauling noise, Fiction Avalanche is an emotionally intense and dynamically varied document from the next generation.
Troy Collins
Feb 1, 2013
Kris Davis’ quartet (tenor saxophonist Tony Malaby, bassist Eivind Opsvik, drummer Jeff Davis) plays music that is utterly impossible to anticipate yet contains its own discipline. It lives somewhere between free improvisation and modern composed chamber music. Some of Davis’ concepts are specific, like “Prairie Eyes,” a long, passionate Malaby rise and fall over Davis’ obsessive piano figure. Some are diverse, like “Black Tunnel,” a stuttering, oscillating message stated like contrapuntal Morse code by piano and saxophone, which becomes two saxophone crises separated by piano skitterings. Then a single piano note becomes a stream and then raging rapids. Meanwhile Opsvik’s bass and Jeff Davis’ drums heave and lurch. Two minutes into “Wayne Oskar,” Davis’ fidgeting, zigzagging piano is suddenly revealed to also contain Malaby’s saxophone expletives, in rough unison. What you thought was random chaos turns out to be form. One of the many things the listener must accommodate in this music is its enormous dynamic range. “Empty Beehive” (arco bass rustlings, tentative piano placements) is atypical because it barely breaks the silence. Most pieces shift alarmingly between whispers and shrieks. The role that Davis assigns herself is often to repeat simple figures, sometimes as simple as one note or one chord, which start as rational and become manic as they compulsively recur. In return for patience and trust and a wide-open mind, Kris Davis’ music offers uncommon creative adventure.
Thomas Conrad
Feb 1, 2013
Canadian born, Brooklyn-based pianist Kris Davis made inroads into the public consciousness with a pair of albums on Fresh Sound-New Talent with her quartet of saxophonist Tony Malaby, bassist Eivind Opsvik and drummer Jeff Davis. The four have been exploring her compositions for three albums now (the first release was actually by a quintet with trumpeter Russ Johnson) and have developed into a group that can maneuver through all of their little “minefields” that can trip up even an accomplished improviser. The pieces on Rye Eclipse are open enough to show the players’ individuality yet are also compositions where all four players are breathing as one. The title track is a good case in point. It alternates pounding, dense, skronking passages with those of uneasy, spectral harmonics-filled calm. “Prarie Eyes” revolves around repetitive piano patterns over which Malaby frosts the melody and bass and drums offer commentary. The opening passages of “Empty Beehive” hover effectively in near silence before building up to its climactic apex. “Minnow Bucket” is a brief track with Malaby and Davis alternating parts of the theme before settling into a staggered rhythmic lurch until its conclusion, a musical question mark. Davis’ compositions are unusual and effective with something unique to offer. This is a true quartet and no one musician stands out—Malaby’s burly tenor is as much a part of the group fabric as a solo voice, Davis’ piano is full of fleeting melodic lines, harmonically rich chords and abrupt bashing jabs and the rhythm section functions as a cohesive unit. All of this makes Davis’ group into one of the more exciting propositions in today’s jazz fabric.
Robert Iannapollo
Feb 1, 2013
The musical evolution of pianist Kris Davis as a leader is quite remarkable. Her first CD “Lifespan” was nice, still deeply anchored in traditional forms, and a little impressionistic. The second “The Slightest Shift” meant more than a slight move : the compositions became more abstract, the band smaller, the intensity more than a notch higher, but still with clear structural forms and mainstream elements and sentimentality. On “Rye Eclipse”, she delves even deeper into the nature of music and sound, and with unbelievable success. The band is the same as on the previous album, with Kris Davis on piano, Tony Malaby on sax, Eivind Opsvik on bass and Jeff Davis on drums, but this band now works as a single instrument. The music seems stripped of all unnecessary ornaments and needless patterns and goes directly to the core of the matter : creating emotional expressiveness and musical explorations that go beyond genres and conventions. The title track undulates between violent energy and sweet tenderness, starting with an odd-metered hammering rhythm, with pounding piano chords, crashing cymbals and pulsing bass over which Malaby does what he does best : scream with passion and utter despair, subduing the rhythmic beast until only tenderness remains, smooth arco bowing, gentle piano notes and sympathetic percussion, which moves back into roaring rage for some minutes only to end again in the most tender of feelings. And this sets the tone of the album : the tune-crafting of her first records has moved into real art, gaining incredible depth and musical value. On the abstract second track, “Wayne Oskar”, the piano plays a more dominant role, creating a raw directness in which all impressionist flourishes have disappeared. The third track “Prairie Eyes” is calmer, with a repetitive piano line over which Malaby improvises beautifully. The quartet is the most exploratory in the beautiful “Empty Beehive”, in which eery sounds create a magnificent landscape, including buzzing bee evokations by the arco bass and the sax. “Black Tunnel” is the highlight of the album together with the title track : it is varied, again with repetitive hypnotic piano pieces, wonderfully loose drumming, precise and creative bass and sax-playing. At times Satoko Fujii or Vijay Iyer come to mind, because of the physical approach to the instrument, the way the music is at the center of the performance, the cleverness and the adventurous mindset. All four musicians of this band are truly excellent as individual masters of transferring feeling through their instruments, but the biggest achievement is without a doubt the common understanding of the music and how they contribute to generate the same concept even in the most improvised parts. The core of each track is yet always carefully prepared, rhythmically, thematically and structurally, and these by themselves are clever and original, but the way the band brings them makes this album into a great total listening experience. Rich music! Don’t miss it. © stef POSTED BY STEF AT 12:01 AM 0 COMMENTS LINKS TO THIS POST LABELS: *****, FREE JAZZ ALBUM REVIEWS SUNDAY, AUGUST 10, 2008
stef
