What the Dickens is V-Bop? Search me. But clearly it is found on 21st CENTURY V-BOP (SLAM 284), a cooperative venture between MARK ANDERSON (d), PAUL DUNMALL (ts, ss) PHILIP GIBBS (el g), and TONY HYMAS (kybds). (The Path of Nonevitability/ The Front/ John's Intellegent Ears/ Once More Into No-Thing/ Mad Dash for the Exit/ Preyer/ A Knight On the Tiles 65:38.)
The music? It's a Free collective improv with moments where one or more players dominates in more or less solo form (a la Miles' first electric bands) along with a funk-rock underpinning in the drums and some collective embellishments (again a la earlier plugged-in Miles). Once in a while the time gets Free. Then one remembers Shorter's Supernova and realizes that this is similar in its times, but in ways that offer difference and refreshment. Then come explosions of fierce energy—easily approved by those who like such power. (I did/do.)
Paul Dunmall sounds terrific. Playing with his typical power and force, he gives the proceedings plenty of bal-derdashing strength. Gibbs gets into a shreddingly skronky mode much of the time, supplying a further edge to the music. Tony Hymas varies between ultra-free electronic and acoustical skitterings and rhythmic jabbing to set off against the Rock pulse. Quite simply, that's what this V-Bop is: good out jamming. Most likely you already made a determination about such activities. If you dig it, you'll dig this version. If you don't, I doubt your mind will change on the basis of this CD. I found it quite credible, unpredictable within the parameters set, and especially nice for its lack of posturing or cliché-regurgitation. Well, that's all folks. Or is it? One never…(you know, Fats). . .
Grego Applegate Edwards oct - nov - dec 2011 | cadence
Une forme d'esprit aylerien est présente dans ce disque, non pas dans le jeu ou le style, mais dans la pratique d'une sorte d'exorcisme de démons musicaux divers, utilisés et interprétés de manière neuve et personnelle. Chacune des sept compositions spontanées de ce quartet fait ressurgir un inconscient musical habituellement refoulé: le jazz fusion, le rock psychédélique,la musique rituelle, le drum and bass, etc, toute musique qui paraît avoir bercée chacun des musiciens réunis ici. Le choix de l'instrumentation et des instrumentistes se révèle alors excellent pour servir autant de genres différents, l'unité est préservée grâce à la souplesse que permet cette formation. Anderson ne recule pas devant des rythmiques binaires obsessionnelles à la Mickey Hart (Grateful Dead), jazz, ou drum and bass, tandis que le jeu de Gibbs nous amène aussi bien dans un univers de jazz fusion cosmique, entre Weather Report et Sun Ra, que dans un univers marqué par Hendrix, la wahwah et la distorsion. Hymas et ses claviers est certainement le pillier de cette souplesse, ses claviers sortent tout droit de l'univers de Syd Barrett et finissent dans la droite lignée d'Hancock période Headhunters. Quant à Dunmall, plutôt fidèle à lui-même, il reste principalement dans un jeu free jazz plutôt marqué par le jazz modal de Trane et Wayne Shorter. Les couleurs sont donc variées, l'intensité est contrastée, il y a de nombreux reliefs, on passe facilement d'une musique endiablée, dansante, à une ambiance contemplative, méditative et psychotrope. Et même si aucun thème n'est utilisé, chaque morceau est encadrée par des modes et une structure rythmique très précise, et même plutôt stable pour de la musique improvisée. Le résultat: un disque éclectique, singulier et personnel, aussi riche d'interprétation que d'inspiration, qui sait garder la force des musique auxquelles il rend hommage sans se départir ni de sa personnalité, ni de son inscription dans la musique improvisée du 21e. Bref, c'est beau, énergique, groovy, idiomatique, réfléchi, sans complexes ni contraintes pesantes: à écouter. http://improv-sphere.blogspot.com/2011/02/mark-anderson-paul-dunmall-philip-gibbs.html
TRANSLATION
"Something of the spirit of Albert Ayler is present in this disc, not in the playing or style, but in the practice of a form of exorcism of various musical demons, used and interpreted in a new, personal way. Each of this quartet's seven spontaneous compositions...(brings out a crazy unconscious musical habit...) jazz fusion, psychedelic rock, ritual music, drum and bass, etc., all music which seems to have cradled the musicians brought together here. The choice of instrumentation and of instrumentalists shows them excellent to bring so many different genres unity thanks to the suppleness this line- up permits. Anderson doesn't shrink from the obsessional two- step rhythms of Mickey Hart (Grateful Dead,) or jazz, or drum and bass, while the playing of Gibbs brings us just as well in(to) a universe of cosmic jazz fusion, between Weather Report and Sun Ra, as in(to) a universe marked by Hendrix, wahwah and distortion. Hymas and his keyboards are certainly the pillar of this suppleness, his keys start out well in the universe of Syd Barrett and end up in the Hancock Headhunters period...As for Dunmall, always true to himself, he stays mainly in a free jazz playing, ever distinguished by the modal jazz of Trane and Wayne Shorter.
The colours are thus varied, the intensity contrasting, there are many reliefs (*) one passes easily from a danceable devil's music, to a contemplative, meditative psychotropic ambience. And (so each theme doesn't become) tired, each morsel is surrounded by modes and a very precise rhythmic structure, ever stable for improvised music. The result: an eclectic record, singular and personal, equally rich in interpretation and inspiration, which knows how to keep safe the music to which it pays homage without losing either its personality or its (place) in the improvised music of the 21st century. In brief: it's beautiful, energetic, groovy, idiomatic, reflective, without hangups or tunnel vision; get listening.
MARK ANDERSON, PAUL DUNMALL, PHILIP GIBBS & TONY HYMAS / 21stCentury V-Bop (Slam Productions)
Deux connus et deux inconnus pour moi dans ce quatuor. Dunmall (saxo) et Gibbs (guitare) sont des valeurs sûres. Anderson (batterie) s'avère un improvisateur solide. Quant à Hymas... j'ai toujours de la difficulté avec les claviers en musique improvisée (pas le piano ou les synthés modulaires, mais le clavier électronique). Hymas réussit à déjouer les idées préconçues et à faire du neuf avec son instrument, mais je ne suis pas entièrement convaincu. Cela dit, ce disque bouge beaucoup, dans une veine semblable à celle explorée par les incarnations de Soft Machine des dernières années et par Clear Frame.
Two known variables, two unknown ones in this quartet for me. Dunmall (sax) and Gibbs (guitar) are sound values. Anderson (drums) proves to be a solid improviser. As for Hymas… I've always had diificulties with keyboards in free improvisation (not piano or modular synths, but electronic keyboards). Hymas manages to thwart preconceptions and do something new with his instrument, but I am not entirely convinced. That said, this record shakes a lot, in a vein similar to Soft Machine's latest incarnations and Clear Frame.
François Couture http://blog.monsieurdelire.com/2011/01/2011-01-05-outward-bound.html
The twenty-first century bop
That improvisation is not only linked all'altonalità we had already demonstrated the late drummerJohn Stevens, leaving some interesting recordings of jazz rock with no idea of composition behind. It's what they do here as wellMark Andersonon drums,Paul Dunmallon tenor sax and the soprano,Philip Gibbson electric guitar andTony Hymason drums.They improvise a lot with terrestrial atmosphere, inspired by some jazz rock album of the past (and "John's Intelligent Ears" is dedicated toJohn McLaughlin), no overdubs, no preconceived ideas.Simply you are locked in a studio and you are left to go according to what inspired the moment. It is an exciting hard right, where everyone has his part, which is inspired by the fusion saxophonists or drummers, from the free-funk guitar (an amazingPhilip Gibbs) or cash from the keyboards of aHerbie Hancock.With this quartet is heard once that the jazz rock still has much to say beyond what has been said in previous years, when record companies were still to impose a certain fashion.Here freedom is absolute and across.
Il bop del ventunesimo secolo Che l´improvvisazione non fosse legata soltanto all´altonalità ce lo aveva dimostrato già il compianto batteristaJohn Stevens, lasciando delle interessanti incisioni di jazz rock senza alcuna idea compositiva dietro. È quello che fanno qui pureMark Andersonalla batteria,Paul Dunmallai sax tenore e soprano,Philipp Gibbsalla chitarra elettrica eTony Hymasalla batteria. Sono loro ad improvvisare con atmosfere molto terrestri, ispirate da certi album jazz rock del passato (e "John´s Intelligent Ears" è dedicata aJohn McLaughlin), senza sovraincisioni, senza idee preconcette. Semplicemente si sono rinchiusi in uno studio e si sono lasciati andare secondo quello che ispirava il momento. È un disco proprio entusiasmante, in cui ognuno ha la sua parte, che sia ispirato dai batteristi o dai sassofonisti fusion, dalle chitarre free-funk (uno strepitosoPhilip Gibbs) o dalle tastiere liquide di unHerbie Hancock. Con questo quartetto si ascolta subito che il jazz rock ha ancora tanto da dire, al di là di quello che è stato detto negli anni passati, quando le case discografiche erano ancora ad imporre una certa moda. Qui la libertà è assoluta ed i risultati strepitosi. Cosimo Parisi http://www.musicboom.it/mostra_recensioni.php?Unico=20101220004802
Mark Anderson/ Paul Dunmall/Philip Gibbs/Tony Hymas
21st Century V-Bop
SLAM CD 284
Uli Kempendorff Quartet Louise Jazzhaus Musik JHM 189
Quartet combinations with saxophone, guitar and drums often negotiate the boundaries separating Jazz-Rock and Jazz-Improv. The German and British ensembles featured here negotiate opposite sides of the divide precisely because of each combo's fourth member. With resilient pressures from Marc Muellbauer's double bass, the band of reedist Uli Kempendorff, drummer Kay Lübke and guitarist Ronny Graupe works in Jazz-Improv conception. Meanwhile the intricate, somewhat spacey lines from Tony Hymas' keyboards encourage Jazz-Rock invention from saxophonist Paul Dunmall, guitarist Philip Gibbs and drummer Mark Anderson.
There's some irony implicit in these session designations, though. In other situations, often with Gibbs affiliated, Dunmall plays fiery Free Jazz. Meanwhile Graupe's most frequent gig is with the Berlin-based Hyperactive Kid trio, which is as apt to call on Rock rhythms as Jazz elaborations.
Kempendorff, Louise's leader, is another Berliner whose experience ranges from theatre, film and cabaret – the last with Canadian Aboriginal playwright/pianist Tomson Highway – teaching music, plus gigs with likes of pianist Ulrich Gumpert Workshop band. His academic and theatrical background is put in bold relief during his woody, near-Klezmer clarinet extensions on this CD's "Rosen", adapted from a composition by East German Hanns Eisler. As the clarinetist flutter-tongues, he's backed by the guitarist's robust, near-flamenco strums; cymbal resonation from Lübke, who has recorded with saxophonist Silke Eberhard; plus cross string scrawls, wooden body patting and below-the-bridge scratches from the bassist who both teaches at the Hanns Eisler music school and leads his own nine-piece Kaleidoscope band. On the other hand, "Ringelreih" features Kempendorff's flutter-tongued a capella exposition on tenor saxophone before the stop-time theme kicks in. Spurred by plucked bass lines and the drummer's pops and rebounds, the saxophonist spins out lightly accented timbres which keep his solo linear even as he adds snorts and higher-pitched double tonguing.
Overall, the saxophonist's presentation of his compositions can sound either straight-ahead or funky. The first occurs when Lübke frequently pounds his snares and smashes his cymbals as if he was Shelly Manne at a West Coast Jazz date; the latter is exposed on "Gruß an Die Aiebzinger", where Lübke's shuffle beat bridges slippery string pumps from Graupe and swiftly vibrating legato sax lines from Kempendorff. Overall, the most affecting aural memory from the disc is the interplay between the saxophonist and the guitarist. To wit: flutter tonguing, twisting slurs and staccato trills on the saxophonist's part are met by the guitar's contrapuntal picking, skittering and mirrored note clusters or sprayed timbre decorations.
Similarly Gibbs' and Dunmall's pronounced guitar-saxophone intersection has been developed over many performances and just as many CDs recorded since before the beginning of the 21st Century. Self-taught, the Bristol-based guitarist also plays solo and with the cream of Improv players ranging from pianist Keith Tippett to drummer Hamid Drake. Meanwhile Hymas' most high profile corresponding gigs have been with the likes of guitarist Jeff Beck and electric bassist Stanley Clarke as well as playing and composing notated music. One of a group of percussionists with homonymous or the same name, Anderson is a journeymen who has worked on both the Rock and Jazz side of the fence.
The latter two's background may what pushes 21st Century V-Bop towards Rock, although the four are accomplished enough to eschew Pop Fusion and keep the communication lines open with free-form Improv. Dunmall in particular though, plays more linear and melodic lines than usual, especially on soprano saxophone, whose clear glissandi are the defining feature of most Fusion dates. Here, at least, when his timbres appear uncharacteristically chromatic, Gibbs is on hand to push him out of the comfort zone with resonating licks and swelling reverb. Equally pressurized knob-twisting distortions and wah-wah pedal strain from Gibbs sometimes presage additional coloration from Hymas' church music-like keyboard chording and Anderson's repetitive beats and clattering clunks.
Still, an inordinate number of faded endings on the CD suggest that despite the quartet's talents, satisfying conclusions were lacking once everyone expressed his musical thoughts. Paced cadences and crescendos plus internal soundboard-clunks from the pianist; shattering cymbal breaks and paced ruffs from the drummer; and even the guitarist's methodological and contrapuntal licks, including flanges and claw-hammer string pounding, don't give enough shape to the proceeding.
Tellingly the most accomplished of these group instant compositions is the final one which is almost the lengthiest. Following some initial verbal mumbles and cries, "A Knight on the Tiles" takes off in a flurry of squealing reed bites, cross-handed snare pops, staccato electric piano comping and finger-picked string slides and slurs. As the keyboardist cascades high-frequency note flurries, his narrative evolves into double counterpoint, with Gibbs' knob-twisting and slurred fingering in full pursuit. Intensifying his response, the keyboardist brings foot pedal pressure into play as he key clips and slaps. Heading for a resolution, Dunmall begins a sinuous soprano saxophone exposition with powerful double tonguing and an expansive vibrato. Eventually heavily syncopated guitar strumming and two-handed keyboard runs join the long-lined sax lines to complete the musical thoughts.
Similarly constituted in personnel, but completely different sounding CDs, both discs provide ample showcase for the band members' multi-talents. On reflection, though, it appears that sonic cooperation is more obvious – and satisfying – on the German than the British session.
--Ken Waxman http://www.jazzword.com/review/127503
