Beyond strict category

Salon Kingsadore @ CJC

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Murray McNabb

It had been a very busy week for me and I had not paid too much attention to the CJC (Creative Jazz Club) website.   All I could recall about the gig was that it would be something different.   The instruments came into view as I descended the stairs and as my eyes accustomed to the gloom I saw Murray McNabb.   Murray is a veteran of the New Zealand Jazz scene and ‘different’ is exactly what he does best.  There was a bank of keyboards, numerous pedals, leads everywhere, a drum kit and two guitars barely visible in the back ground.  I quickly learned that this was the release gig for the second album by Salon Kingsadore – ‘Anti Borneo Magic’.  Yes the title gave more than a hint of what we were in for.  An exotic improvised trance like dreamscape.   After a hectic week that was exactly what I needed and from the first vamp I relaxed into the music.

Salon Kingsadore was formed in 2004 to write a soundtrack for a play and their works are styled – spontaneous cinematic compositions.  Not long after that first album they were invited to perform at a film release in Italy.  These projects appear to be under the creative guidance of Murray McNabb (keyboards) and Gianmarco Liguori (guitars).  The other band members are Hayden Sinclair (bass) and Steven Tait (drums).  Murray McNabb is a successful film score composer having written for films like ‘Once were Warriors’.  Steven Tait

I have seen Murray perform many times and his own compositions are notable for the way in which he mines simple themes in subtle and deceptively complex ways.  He is the master of ostinato.  There are often references to modal music in his compositions (Turkish Like) but tonight the fare was more tightly focused.  At first listen there was an impression that the drums, bass and guitar were playing the same motif over and again while Murray developed the themes and added fills and colour.   This was not the case as subtle variants and accented changes could be determined if you listened properly.  Continuous and spontaneous improvisation over a vamp requires certain disciplines and foremost among these is a keen awareness of space and dynamics.  This interactive process requires everyone to participate actively and when that happens the repetitive transforms itself into something profound.

This is music that takes some right out their comfort zone as it references such diverse sources as John Zorn, film music, African music, psychedelic fusion and even surf music.   Someone asked me if it was Jazz.  I would certainly place it within the spectrum of jazz, but as an outlier with strong filmic qualities.  I have listened to a lot of John Zorn, Manfred Schoof and psychedelic Jazz Fusion over the years and so this was never going to scare me.

After a long week I quickly relaxed into the aural dreamscape unfolding.  This is music that you can dive into, swim away from shore and float free in.

WHAT: Salon Kingsadore – ‘Anti-Borneo Music’. Album release.

WHERE: CJC Creative Jazz Club – 1885 Brittomart

WHO: Murray McNabb (keys), Gianmarco Liguori (guitars), Hayden Sinclair (bass), Steven Tait (drums). Sarang Bang Records www.sarangbang.co.nz

WHEN: December 5th 2012

Spoilers of Utopia / Ruckus@CJC

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The way that music is interpreted by the human brain is understood up to a point, but there are many mysteries remaining. The topic interests neuroscientists, fans and musicians alike. While pattern recognition is one the of the main hooks drawing us deeper into a piece of music, we also become bored if the pattern remains relentlessly familiar. That doesn’t rule out repeated notes or a vamp as the points of variance are incredibly subtle; groove music or John Cage compositions bear this out. Whether subtle or overt, educated Jazz audiences prefer music that challenges, delights, reveals or amazes.

Good Jazz and improvised music does this despite the few fans who slavishly confine themselves to a single era or style. Live gigs will drag you out of your comfort zone and here’s the thing. Music is a language and we learn by hearing the unfamiliar and comparing it with what we know. Learning language is an innate skill possessed by all humans. As we listen to what we are unsure of, our tastes grow proportionally. These days Dolphy, Ornette Coleman, Art Ensemble of Chicago, Carla Bley and Zorn have a solid foothold in our consciousness; just as Jackson Pollack makes overwhelming sense when seen on a gallery wall. Jazz listeners should always want more than sonic wallpaper.

In keeping with Roger Manins enlightened approach as program director of the CJC (Creative Jazz Club), he had booked two very interesting groups to play on the 17th October 2012. First up was ‘Ruckus’, a quartet that was anything but run of the mill. The second was the out-brass ensemble (+ four), ‘Spoilers of Utopia’. What we got was joyful, challenging and outrageously humorous music. Music that was fiendishly clever without once resorting to introspective navel gazing.

‘Ruckus’ led by David Ward, a fine guitarist who has assimilated a dozen guitar styles and then stepped free of them. He composed the tunes Ruckus played and they were a metaphor for the inventiveness and vibrancy of the New Zealand Jazz scene. The set list was interesting and the group showed real guts in their interpretations. No one cruised through this material and consequently the collective pulse was quickly amped to a point of high intensity. Some of this material was reminiscent of a Fellini soundtrack, while still managing to evoke real-time global references. It was modern in the best possible way while hinting at its musical origins. I like musical surprises and this music surprised me.

Club goers recognised two well-known locals in ‘Ruckus’, Chris O’Connor (d) and John Bell (vibes). I do not recall seeing the bass player Rui Inaba before but this unit really did come together. Chris and John had double duties this night as they were not only in ‘Ruckus’ but in the ‘Spoilers of Utopia’ as well.

Chris is a drummer that I am very familiar with as his multifaceted approach to traps and percussion makes him a favourite on a number of scenes. He is one of the most talented, open and interesting drummers in New Zealand and it is always fascinating to watch how other drummers flock to hear him. Chris never rushes to fill any void as he understands how complete an implied or missed beat is. He has such a well honed sense of time that he can push at the fabric of reason without losing momentum . He also knows how to remain relaxed at the kit and how to say more with less. The fact that he is one of the nicest cats on the music scene is an added bonus.

John Bell is an extraordinary vibes player and he generally favours the free over the straight ahead. In Ruckus he showed that he is comfortable moving between both worlds. He can swing like ‘Hamp’ then merge that groove seamlessly into an irregular pulse. The one thing that stands out however is his musical courage. John shows an integrity that few vibists do. While a lovely ringing vibrato is what we most often associate with the vibes (early Gary Burton or Bags), the instrument is capable of more besides. He is recapturing the history of the vibraphone while showing us a possible future path. The vibraphone is a percussion instrument and that can easily be forgotten.

The Spoilers of Utopia (also ‘Tparty Spoilers of Utopia’) are a brass heavy ensemble and they are marching resolutely into new territory. While the charts are initially familiar they are never quite what you think. The genius of this music is its kaleidoscopic quality, as it reflects a thousand fractured images while somehow keeping the whole intact. We feel that we can almost grasp the essence; only to find the familiar deconstructed. A pack of travelling Jesters has skilfully woven a new cloth from the old and what was once orderly descends into a pleasant chaos. We follow the twists and turns and just as we fear we are lost…. a disciplined brass band marches out of the haze. This is a new take on tension and release and it really works for me.

The ‘Spoilers of Utopia’ are usually a nonet and as anyone who knows me will verify, I just love a nonet. They are big enough to create to create the illusion of a larger unit but small enough to leave a sense of airiness. To balance out the five brass instruments there was Vibraphonist (John Bell), guitarist (Neil Watson), bass player(Darren Hannah) and drummer (Chris O’Connor). The Brass section were Kingsley Melhuish, Ben Ziber, Finn Scholes, Owen Melhuish, (Don McGlashan absent that night).

I know Finn Scholes having been wowed by his facility on the trumpet (or flugal horn) before. Neil Watson is also a familiar figure at the CJC and I noted how well his solid-body guitar sound fitted the brass dominant ensemble. I liked his contributions enormously and knowing his quirky offbeat take on life and music, it must have been a no-brainer to include him in the mix. There was also a degree of unison playing and with the unusual instrumental configurations, the timbre of the instruments merged to create a richer sound. George Shearing and Tristano grasped this long ago. Having Piano, vibes and/or guitar playing unison lines changed the sound. Putting vibes and guitar with brass was to produce a wonderful contrast. As the ensemble moved from order to chaos and back again I could feel the guiding spirit of John Bell at work: the demented dance instructor shimmering in darkness.

The track that I have selected from the ‘Spoilers of Utopia’ set is so good that I have watched it over and over. The tune is a hymn beloved of the Salvation Army bands, ‘We’re Marching to Zion’ (Sankey). Someone decided on the spot that a drum solo should occur in the middle. As the band proceeded the overall effect of this anarchic but strangely reverential wizardry brought us to our feet? The audience showed wild enthusiasm (and if you peered into the darkness and listened carefully, I swear you could hear Sankey laughing).

This comes from where Jazz began; brass marching bands and random instruments merging to form a new and riskier sound.

Thank you to Jen Sol for providing the video material (as I stupidly forgot my camera bag on that night)

Bennie Maupin & Dick Oatts Massey University

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Lovers of this music with a sense of its history will be aware that there have been markers of excellence laid down along the way. This is not about commercial success but a deeper and infinitely more subtle thing. A powerful vibe that seeps into the DNA of the music, acknowledged by all who have the ears to hear it. Bennie Maupin has laid down a number of such markers in his long career.

I have been listening to Bennie Maupin for most of my life but I suppose that it was Lee Morgan‘s ‘Live at the lighthouse’ album (Blue Note) that made me pay particular attention. The album had been cut at Hermosa Beach (Howard Rumsey’s ‘Lighthouse’) in July 1970. If I were to single out two tracks from that album they would be ‘Peyote’ which Bennie wrote and ‘Beehive’ by Harold Maybern. The former is a wonderful piece of lyrical writing with highly melodic hooks and subtle shifts in intensity which pull you ever deeper into the tune. The latter is a fiery burner that immediately tells you that Bennie is gazing at limitless improvisational horizons and flying free of known constraints.

Later that year he played so memorably on Miles ‘Bitches Brew’ (Columbia) and his bass clarinet on that album continued the groundbreaking work of Eric Dolphy. During the next decade he alternated between Herbie Hancock (‘Mwandishi’, ‘Headhunters’) and Miles (‘A Tribute to Jack Johnson’, ‘On The Corner’, ‘Big Fun’); while cutting his own first album as leader in 1974. ‘The Jewel in the Lotus’ (ECM) has been one of the most sought after albums in Jazz until its re-issue a few years ago. After that came ‘Slow Traffic to the Right’, ‘Moonscapes’, ‘Driving While Black on Intuition’, ‘Penumbra’ and ‘Early Reflections’. As a sideman he has played with the who’s who of the classic Jazz world including Horace Sliver and McCoy Tyner.

Immediately I heard about the Massey University concert featuring Dick Oatts and Bennie Maupin I asked the organisers if I could have a few words with the visitors. No Jazz writer would want to overlook an opportunity like this. I had been quite ill that week but no illness was going to stand in the way of this day.

Late Sunday morning on the day of the concert we met at a coffee bar near the Massey campus and while we ate I began a series of short conversations that ended up lasting until midnight. Dick is a friendly man with a big smile and a hint of the raconteur about him. Bennie is a little quieter, but you soon sense that he is taking everything in and he reveals an inner warmth as he gets to know you.

I had been burning to ask Bennie about his uncanny abilities as a multi reeds and winds player. “Why are there so few that master a range of horns” I asked? Like Dolphy before him Bennie has been extraordinarily proficient on all of his horns. When he was 18 years of age Eric Dolphy had handed him his flute saying, “show me how you play”. He then gave him an impromptu 40 minute flute lesson. What Bennie learned about technique in that short lesson was never forgotten.

He looked at me and said with deep reverence, “Dolphy was the greatest. Being a multi reeds and winds player is the path I was encouraged to take by those around me and in particular by my teacher Buddy Collette. There is no magic bullet, just very hard work. If you don’t maintain the maximum effort on each horn you quickly lose your edge”.

Because I loved ‘ Live at the Lighthouse ‘ so much I asked him about Harold Maybern’s ‘Beehive’. It is an incendiary tune bursting at the seams with raw energy. “Oh that tune was very hard the first time we played it”, said Bennie. “It was the velocity, but by the time we got to the ‘Lighthouse’, we were on top of it. That gig was recorded live and so we understood, no second takes. We could not even check the recording afterwards”. What Bennie, Jymie Merritt, Mickey Roker, Harold Maybern and Lee Morgan fused together was an energy infused miracle.

As we didn’t have much time before rehearsals we discussed his recordings as leader. ‘The Jewel in the Lotus’ (ECM 1974) is a gentle but profound masterpiece. The layering of instruments creates a soundscape that has space and incredible depth. In my mind this is not a fusion album but a manifesto of the spiritual mores of the 1970’s Jazz world. As with Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, Bennie follows Nichiren Buddhism. An unpretentious spirituality quietly informs his work.

I learned that a Big Band version of the title track ‘The Jewel in the Lotus’ (Maupin), was to be played that night. They would also be playing ‘Water Torture’ (Maupin). This was transcribed and orchestrated by Mike Booth for the performance and Mike would be one of the few Kiwi musicians who could take on such a task in the limited timeframe. The result was praiseworthy and with Bennie on board it soared.

Dick Oatts (alto sax and other reeds) will be well-known to anyone who has followed the incarnations of the famous Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Big Band (Village Vanguard Orchestra). He is a mainstay of that orchestra and as I was soon to learn, his writing skills were honed to perfection. He has been to Auckland before and his return engagement was received with great enthusiasm. His extensive recordings as leader culminated with ‘Two Hearts’ (2009). This man is really across his music and his phenomenal chops, his focus and his writing skills all revealed themselves as the day proceeded.

Phil Broadhurst and the musicians then asked if I would like to attend the rehearsal. No second invitation needed.

What I witnessed was a highly informative music lesson. It is commonplace in Jazz for musicians who have never collaborated before to be thrown together. This is what Jazz musicians do. In these situations a musicians reading skills, memory and concentration are tested. When backing an iconic figure like Bennie Maupin or a gifted altoist like Dick Oatts, the risks intensify. This is when less experienced band members have to step up and the stretch is often a big one. The local musicians met that challenge on Sunday. In Jazz all higher learning stems from such experiences.

The program had been split into two segments. The first half was a sextet featuring Phil Broadhurst (piano), Frank Gibson Jnr (drums), Alberto Santorelli (bass), Neil Watson (guitar) – Bennie Maupin and Dick Oatts (saxophones). The second half was the Auckland Jazz Orchestra; first on their own and then with the visitors. Trudy Lile was featuring on Jazz Flute in a beautiful piece titled ‘Sogur Fjord’; a flute and orchestra chart which Mike Booth had brought back from Scandinavia some years ago.

When Bennie heard Trudy play he informed her. You will play up front with us in the first half as well. He then sat down and proceeded to write some parts for her. This writing on the fly was a feature of the afternoon and Dick Oatts was forever adjusting and rewriting charts to suit the instrumentation. This is a valuable skill that experienced professionals possess. In rehearsing the band Bennie would quietly raise his hand and ask for a subtle change. This was music under constant revision and aiming for the best outcome – an ideal improvisational vehicle.

Trudy had looked stunned for the briefest second and then she had focussed. She gave it everything and performed brilliantly.

The concert began at 8pm and it all came together as planned. The sextet plus Trudy played ‘Water Torture’ (Maupin), a reharmonisation of ‘Just Friends’ (‘Just Us’ Oatts) and several more numbers culminating with an impromptu performance of ‘Straight No Chaser’ (Monk). The second segment began with the AJO and Trudy, who were soon joined by Bennie and Dick.

If someone asked me today to choose my ten Desert Island tracks I would reel off nine and then add….oh and give me that Massey Concert AJO/Maupin version of ‘The Jewel and the Lotus’. To say that I enjoyed the tune would be a gross understatement.

The last number was ‘Naima’ and Dick Oatts was superb. He wove in all of the elements of the tune and then took it to new places. This was a display of passion and chops second to none. The performances on the night were all great and the AJO had raised the bar yet again.

Later as I ran Bennie and Dick back to their hotel I could not help but think. This has been the best of days.

I dedicate this post to Dr Cranshaw and to Kay, who kicked my ass and convinced me that I would find the strength to go.

The Silhouette of Mr Pink @ CJC

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On the 25th July 2012 the Christchurch band ‘The Silhouette of Mr Pink ‘ fronted the CJC.   I had heard Roger Manins speak enthusiastically about the ‘New Music Collective’ and of Tamara Smith, but I had not yet encountered her music (I don’t think that Tamara or the band have recorded although they featured on Colette Jansen’s ‘Jazz Footprints’ program earlier in the year).

It is becoming commonplace for small groups to omit chordal instruments and this group was essentially a flute led trio/quartet.   The variety of instrumental configurations popping up around the country tells me that New Zealand Jazz audiences are increasingly open to adventurous and quirky Jazz.

Tamara is a real presence on stage and her personality and chops leave you in no doubt that she could play solo flute and still hold the attention of an audience.  

The band opened the first set as a trio, with Tamara on C & Alto flutes, Andrew Keegan on drums and Mike Story on bass.  Tamara’s compositions were reworked for the gig and they emanated from a long sojourn in Paris when she was younger.  The compositions sounded fresh and in many ways unexpected as they tallied perfectly with the stories that Tamara told.   Her musical and verbal vignettes spoke of exotic locations and they reminded me of haiku.  Perfectly contained miniatures – pebbles of sound hitting a pond and spreading like ripples.  It was up to us to interpret and we did; this drew the audience nicely into the creative process.

As the evening progressed the fourth member of the band Chris Burke (tenor sax) joined in.  In keeping with the smaller group he tended to favour unison lines unless either he or Tamara were soloing.

The track that I have put up “Cheeky Monkey” was composed by Tamara and it gives a good account of the group’s dynamics.   It begins with her playing unaccompanied (although you would hardly know that, so full is the sound).   Many of the modern flute techniques can be heard such as her singing in parallel harmony and in producing a multitude of extended flute techniques too numerous to mention.  The multi-phonic effects added real depth the sound.  

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‘Troubles’ hit the CJC

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John Rae exhorting everyone; call & response

It has always been said that troubles arrive in pairs.   In this case the old adage was woefully awry as ‘The Troubles’ arrived in nonet form.  Their arrival may have ‘Rattled’ us somewhat, but we are built of stern stuff in Auckland.   We fortified our ourselves with strong liquor and pep talks, adjusted our parental lockout settings to allow for some serious swearing and settled in for the realpolitik of John Rae’s and Lucien Johnson’s crazy-happy Jazz.     ‘Oh Yeah’, we told ourselves, ‘We are ready to handle anything a Wellington band can throw our way’.

The Troubles-  call & response

There are bands that I like, bands that I respect and bands which drive me wild with pleasure.   ‘The Troubles’ are of the latter kind.   I’m besotted with this band and their deliberately ragged, madly political, quasi-serious satire.    This band digs deep into the well-springs of life and what bubbles up is a joyous lake of barely controlled madness.   The anarchic overtones are deliberate, but there is a scream-in-your-face humour that overshadows all else.   This is about chiaroscuro; a bunch of opposites vying with each other for attention.

This band is about plunging us without warning into the troubled spots of the world and then showing us humour where we thought none existed.  The overt political messages were a joy to me as I have never quite understood why this space is not filled more often.   The history of Jazz is intensely political and to describe ‘The Troubles’ music as a continuation of the work done by Carla Bley, Charlie Haden and especially Charles Mingus (even Benny Goodman) is not too far-fetched.    This band is a talented group of clowns shaking us by the scruff and saying; laugh or cry but for god’s sake look at the world about you.   There is no solace for Lehman Bros, Merrill Lynch, Barclay’s or John Key here.  For Jazz lovers with big ears there is joy aplenty.

This band is about call & response; not just between instrumentalists, but by the band vocally responding to John Rae’s trade mark exhortations.  Although he leads from the drum kit, that doesn’t prevent him standing up and shouting at the band (or the audience) to elicit stronger reactions.  During one of the middle Eastern sounding numbers (which appeared to lay the Wests hypocrisy bare), he shouted in what I can only assume was faux Arabic.  A flow of equally Arabic sounding responses flowed back .   It was the string section verbally responding as they wove their melodies around the theme.

On another occasion John Rae announced that we would be celebrating an often ignored trouble spot.   “I will now express solidarity with the North Americans”, he announced.  “The Sioux, Cherokee, Iroquois, Apache, Mohave etc”.   He began with a corny war dance drum beat which quickly morphed into a tune from ‘Annie Get Your Gun’.   As the melodic structure unwound into free-Jazz chaos we all understood the history lesson and laughed at the outrageousness of the portrayal.

Another Tango melody written by Lucien gradually reached a joyous fever pitch.  During the out-chorus the instruments dropped out one by one and as each instrument stopped playing the musicians raised a closed fist in a revolutionary salute.   Although it was quite dark in the club we had all picked up the cues.  This was a musical night beyond glib definition.

Like life, the music gave us lighter and then more thoughtful moments.  Musically it was amazing fun and after a difficult week I was suddenly glad I was alive.

Mission accomplished I think John and Lucien – keep shaking us up please.

John Rae (drums, co-leader, co-writer, co-arranger).  Lucien Johnson (sax, co-leader, co-arranger, co-writer).  Patrick Bleakley (double bass).  Daniel Yeabsley (Clarinet). Jake Baxendale (saxes). Hanna Fraser (violin). Charley Davenport (cello), Tristan Carter (violin). Andrew Filmer (viola).   Buy a copy of ‘The Troubles’ today at Rattle Records Ltd.  Venue – CJC Jazz Club Auckland.

Andrea Lisa – R & B album ‘So Sweet’

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Mid summer 2011 I was walking in the Wynyard Quarter (Auckland’s waterfront area) when the warm sounds of Jazz guitar voicings drew me into a courtyard.  The guitar was being played by a diminutive young woman with a lovely Ibenez JSM hollow-body guitar.  I soon learned the name of the guitarist and introduced myself.   This was my first meeting with Andrea Lisa Groenewald.

Between the sets we spoke of Pat Martino, John Scofield and groove anthems like ‘Sunny’ and its reharmonised form ‘Red Clay’.  I also learned that South African born Andrea had just graduated from the NZSM Massy Jazz School.   We exchanged the odd email and before long I received a notification that the ‘Alex Churchill- Andrea Lisa Band’ would be playing two sets at the CJC – emerging talent night.    That night established Andrea’s Jazz chops before a wider Jazz audience as she and Alex convincingly tackled a mixture of their own material and some complex tunes like Pat Metheny’s ‘Have You Heard’.  To hear this so skillfully executed by guitar, keys, voice and sax playing unison lines was a rare treat.  (see earlier reviews)

Andrea playing with AJO

Fast forward to late 2011 and Andrea cut an R & B EP titled ‘So Sweet‘.  Andrea was always going to do well.  She is a great guitarist, has a smokey ‘Nora Jones’ type voice, writes interesting material and she looks the part on the band stand.  Since playing that first gig at the CJC, she has gigged extensively around Australasia and has toured with the famous Jonathon Butler Band.   Jonathon Butler is a well-known R & B/Jazz Fusion singer (also hailing from Capetown).   Andrea and the band have been touring Sydney, Perth and Brisbane where they have established quite a following.  They return to Australia this week.

The EP has six tracks: two of them instrumental.   ‘Paint the Sky’ (Groenewald) is the tune that I am most familiar with.   This has been a tour-de-force for Andrea and in more wide open contexts it has been a good vehicle for improvisation.   The other tracks are ‘So Sweet'(two versions), ‘Imaginary Me’, ‘Love Thang’ and ‘Ambition’.  This disk is squarely aimed at the R & B market and because of that I must put in a disclaimer here.  I am probably not qualified to make critical forays into that genre.  What is quite evident however is that this is a terrific album.  Andrea has had impeccable Jazz training and because of that she is very well equipped to embark upon this new journey.  As a singer songwriter she will find a ready market, because she has talent and because she has her own compelling story to tell.  The band members are: Andrea Lisa – electric and acoustic guitar, vocals.  Alex Churchill – keyboards, alto & tenor sax. Nicholas Taylor – bass, Lenny Church – drums.   Guest artist: Lewis McCallum – flute.

The EP is available on iTunes as a download, or you can follow the group on facebook.com/andrealisag

I just had to add this last clip in.   As you will see it is a shaky phone recording of Andrea soloing at a Sydney gig.   Taking on Chick Corea’s ‘Spain’ is challenge enough, but to construct such an amazing solo is mind-blowing.   I saw this clip minutes after the gig and watch it often.

A Plea:  You were great with the AJO two weeks ago and you owned ‘Spain’.   I wish you the very best in your R & B Career Andrea, but come home and play for us occasionally – we like your stretched-out hard blowing Jazz as well – spare us a Jazz moment when you can.

Motif – (Norway)

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Motif

We get a number international acts breezing through Auckland and a few of them play at the CJC.  On Wednesday 6th June we were lucky enough to have the Norwegian ensemble Motif at the club and they lived up to their considerable international reputation.   This is a band which plays highly original but accessible improvised/composed avant-garde music .   They are a killing band and above all they are highly entertaining.

Motif played in America a few years ago where they received excellent reviews in the New York Times (Nate Chinen), Jazzwise and in All About Jazz.  They have been around since 1999 in one form or another and were founded by the seriously out-cat Ole Morten Vagan.

Ole & Atle

It is obvious that this group has big ears as their compositions contain the distant echoes of American and Euro-centric Jazz while still sounding fresh and original.   This is as far from a covers band as you could get, because they gather in the myriad of sounds about them and fashion these into a fresh and exciting soundscapes.  The band may have achieved critical acclaim but they are certainly not above poking fun at themselves.  Ole Mortan Vagan joked several times about their earning potential.   This is a group of musicians who do what they do well and primarily perform for the love of the music.

Havard Wiik

The music was often rambunctious, but the band always drew you back to a collaborative theme after their stratospheric flights of fancy.   The magic woven by individual performers during solos was never at the expense of the ensemble.  It was organised chaos in the best possible way.

I was also delighted to discover that Norwegian humor translates perfectly for a New Zealand audience.  The music was leavened with countless jokes which had us in fits of laughter.   Ole Morten Vagan said that his father had recently accused him of being a bohemian.  When he asked his father to explain he was told, “A bohemian is someone who regards the rent as an unforeseen event”.

The band members were all incredible musicians whether playing as an ensemble or exploring the edge of reason.

The band was: Ole Morten Vagan (bass, jokes), Atle Nymo (saxophone), Eivind Lonning (Trumpet), Harvard Wiik (piano), Hakon Johansen (drums).

At the end of the second set they filed off the band-stand to the sounds of loud enthusiastic applause.  The clapping eventually subsided, but a few determined souls carried on until the band reappeared for a last number.    “That was strange”‘ said Ole.   “At first we heard clapping followed by what sounded like half a dozen potatoes rolling down the stairs – then clapping again.

Roger Manins summed it up perfectly in a recent Face Book post: “Just a heads up for those in Sydney Tomorrow.  MOTIF will be at SIMA– and seriously worth checking out. They were at CJC in Auckland last week and were great– very funny guys too”.    I concur.

‘The Troubles’ – Review

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This is part one of two posts on ‘The Troubles’; An interview with John Rae and Lucien Johnson to follow in a day.

When I received a brief email from Steve at Rattle Records informing me that he was sending me two very interesting disks I sensed that he was excited about what was on offer.  When the tightly wrapped package arrived I wrestled ‘The Troubles’ from its box.  Putting it straight on, I was stunned by what I heard and I played it through twice, letting the sound wash over me.  Steve was right; this was special.

Jazz is supposed to be fresh and to convey the ‘sound of surprise’ and this was bloody surprising.  It immediately put me in mind of ‘The Liberation Music Orchestra’ or even Charles Mingus in the various incarnations of those bands.  Having said that this is very much a New Zealand sound.

The Troubles is performed by a Nonet with the instrumentation hinting at the albums context.  Adding a texture to the music; its wild but perfectly placed brush strokes marking it apart.

There is a string section of violin, cello and viola (Tristan Carter, Andrew Filmer, Charley Davenport) which contrasts nicely with the winds and reeds.  Lucien Johnson plays tenor sax, soprano and flute – Nick Van Dijk doubles on trumpet and trombone while Daniel Yeabsley plays alto, baritone and clarinet.   Add to the above the insistent drumming and shouts of John Rae, the bass of Patrick Bleakley and especially the percussion of Anthony Donaldson and you have a band that is capable of much.

The band had been playing at ‘Happy’ (a Wellington Bar renowned for experimental music) for some time and for a number of reasons this proved to be serendipitous.  What came together during those months is perfectly captured here.  This was recorded on one particular night and due to the exceptional musicianship of the band, the skillful writing and connectedness of everyone involved (including the loyal audience) we have a very special album.

Against the odds New Zealand Jazz is rapidly becoming identifiable as a separate and interesting entity.  Perhaps a subset of the Australasian-Pacific Jazz sound.  On the best Kiwi albums and in the clubs I hear this certain something and I want to confront the musical establishment and say, “Are you freakin deaf…can’t you hear this”?    This thing is ours, it can be wonderful and it is certainly worthy of proper attention.  New Zealand music is very diverse and this is a healthy thing.   Original and exciting bands are continually being formed, but in order for this vibrancy and originality to flourish the music must be better supported.     Here is an album that exemplifies this diversity and it says something unique about us and our place in a sometimes troubled world .

Support the band, buy the album but above all relax and enjoy it.  I defy anyone to dislike this roller-coaster ride through the worlds troubled spots.  It is a journey undertaken with deep humanity but also with a liberal helping of humour throughout.   A warm echo derived from the cacophony about us and filtered through an anarchic but sharply focussed Kiwi lens.

Purchase from Marbecks, JB HiFi, Real Groovy, or leading record stores – otherwise purchase directly from Rattle Records.

‘Dr Dog’ takes the Jazz Pulse of Auckland

/ JazzLocal32.com / 3 Comments

Animal lovers, children and Jazzers alike were delighted to learn that the ‘Dr Dog’ Jazz quartet would be performing in the Creative Jazz Club (CJC). This was somewhat of a dream band as it featured ‘I cani popolari‘ from the halls of academia; Roger Manins (tenor), Kevin Field (piano, Rhodes), Oli Holland (Bass) and Ron Samsom (drums).

The band having no clear leaders could follow their noses, but in spite of that they worked as one throughout the evening. In Jazz-dog years they represented around 317.4 years of experience and so their ability to act in a disciplined manner was hardly surprising. They took their lead from each other.

Roger had managed to sniff out the microphone first and so the job of introducing the band members and the numbers fell to him. An endless stream of puns and dog stories followed and at one point some frank observations on the variability of dog intelligence risked causing serious offense to Afghan owners. As none appeared to be present the crises was averted and the dog related compositions flowed in happy succession.

If anyone thought this to be a frivolous exercise, they should be disabused of that notion. This was a band which had ‘chops’ (OK I had to put that in), the ability to delight a crowd and a string of intelligent compositions to shine over.

It is expected that the canine metaphors and jokes will continue to dog this band for some years; peaking around 2014 before eventually subsiding. As a departure from the normal CD prize there was a meat raffle. A cat named Jason took that prize.

The music that we heard was so good that a few of us are going to lay a trail of sausages; leading from the Auckland University School of Music Jazz Programme to the nearest recording studio (Yorkie Street studios or Ratter Records).

In researching this Canine Jazz phenomena I recalled another dog band which had performed at the CJC . Guitarist Neil Watson’s ‘Zen Dogs’ performed at the club about a year ago. When I ran into Neil months later I asked him if ‘Zen Dogs’ would be performing again soon. He answered in that enigmatic way of all Zen masters. “Oh that was a concept band”. “But will they be performing again”, I asked?. “No the band was literally a concept – not an actual band”. Confused and pondering the meaning of this Koan, I could not help wondering. Had I imagined the entire gig?

‘Dr Dog’ on the other hand is a band grounded in realty. A cartoon dog band entirely relevant to our times.

Footnotes: I have used sepia photographs to show respect, as they add a certain gravitas befitting the age and experience of the band. All photos are mine including ‘Dr Dog’ who was caught in Chelsea London and subjected to Photoshop without his permission. You will be pleased to learn that I managed to avoid using the following: barking up the wrong tree, woofers and Roger was a wag.