Ada Rave Cuartet: La Continuidad

Ada Rave Cuarteto (group)

La Continuidad (Pan Y Rosas Discos; 2011)

Ada Rave (sax)

Wenchi Lazo (guitars)

Martin de Lassaletta (bass)

Martin Lopez Grande (drums)

Argentine, Ada Rave, has produced an exciting and enterprising debut with La Continuidad (Pan Y Rosas Discos). A bright collection of avant garde/free jazz and bop that is reminiscent to Anthony Braxton, Ornette Coleman and even a little bit John Zorn. For a modern correlation, you might imagine is a calmer, Ingrid Laubrock. Ada delivers a maximum punch on sax but she also possess a nice shifting array of themes with her quartet's debut.

"Jardin Chino" lights sparks in every direction. Short, crisp improvised notes from Rave and Lazo are augmented by quiet, searching notes by Grande and de Lassaletta. It almost feels like I was sitting in a club in Chicago listening to one of the various Ken Vandermark outfits. "Balia Con Monk" is an delicious little nod to the legendary pianist. Rave delivers with some superb playing that really does feel like you are experiencing Monk's piano instead of the power melody of a saxophone. It's odd but works perfectly.

Rave is bold and direct. "El Modo y la Etica Braxtono" illustrates a brave composers/improviser utilizing expression, melody and freedom for her bandmates to move and create at their own pace. Grande and de Lassaletta shine with counterpoints that are both simpatico and discordant. Lazo's performance here lies somewhere between Arto Lindsay and Marc Riot. All around killer expressionism.

"Out To Lunch" has a more disjointed more slightly introspective quality to it that becomes inviting and unique all at once. Lazo provides a weird presence that gives the piece more originality and not your standard cover version. "Uptopias Humanicas" provides a postmodern stoppage point on this journey that is both free form and inspired bop. Rave mixes Vandermark inspiration with Laubrock aggression and it's a sonic harmony that concludes the album with beauty.

La Continuidad is an impressive debut from the wildly talented Ada Rave and her quartet. A brilliant combination of abstract expressionism and fluid modernism. Excellent. 

Dan Blake: The Aquarian Suite

Dan Blake (sax)

The Aquarian Suite (BJU Records; 2011)

Jason Palmer (trumpet)

Jorge Roeder (bass)

Richie Barshay (drums)

Dan Blake is a significantly rising talent on the scene today. He has garnered a number of strong awards and played with a good array of musicians (including Julian Lage and Ricardo Gallo) along the way. While only releasing two albums in six years, he is still one of the most in-demand and definitely "one to watch out for" of the most recent list of saxophonists of the last ten years. He has a quality that is both attuned to tradition but also looking to the future.

While listening to Dan Blake's latest record, The Aquarian Suite (BJU Records) you will automatically harken back to a bebop era when music was fresh and vibrant with life. But you will also witness an artist creating a vital spin on tradition. I sense shades of Sonny Rollins or Jackie McLean but with new ideas that are bursting at the seams. "The Whistler" bleeds with variant colours that are both exciting and enchanting. A calm and clever tune that moves up and down providing excellent moments of expression by Blake and a number conversations between each member of the quartet.

"The Best Of Intentions" is a sophisticated ballad that drips with passion and deep respect. It's a soul searching piece and can bring a tear to the eye. "Aquarian" contains a bluesy jump tone and almost spy-like bass tingling performance from Roeder. Moving quietly it begins like an experimental piece and then turns into a crackingly upbeat, as it heads toward the middle. There is a vivid and fun atmosphere that is laid out between Blake, Palmer and Barsahy that becomes inviting and infectious. "Cavemen Do It Too" is euphoric and reflective; with punchy overtones from Roeder and Blake. This is followed by a great solo period from Roeder which is killer. Definitely the hippest highlight of the session but also the perfect way to close it out.

Dan Blake has dedicated individual pieces to those that have been an influence (Monk, Mingus, Braxton, Davis) but really what he has done is created one of the few albums that bridges the gap between the benchmark and launchpad for what many composers/saxophonists should be considering. Blake is a rising talent with all the right ideas and The Aquarian Suite is another piece in a growing arsenal of brilliance.

Animation: Asiento & Agemo

Animation (group)

Asiento/Agemo (RareNoise Records; 2011)

Bob Belden (sax)

Tim Hagans (trumpet)

DJ Logic (electronics, turntables)

Guy Licata (drums)

Scott Kinsey (keyboards)

Matt Garrison (bass)

There have a been a few Miles electric-era inspired records in the last few years. Spanning Mark Isham, Bill Laswell, and Wadda Leo Smith to name just a few. All of these are excellent records and we've discussed a few in the past. But one group that seems to manage this material better than most is Animation. This sextet was originally formed by Bob Belden and Tim Hagans back in the late '90s where they recorded two exciting albums (Imagination and Re-Animation Live) for Blue Note. Well worth checking out.

As for Asiento, this is a live re-interpretation/reinvention of Bitches Brew that sounds and feels more organic than the two previous Animation albums. The music is exquisitely played and while you may want to immediately compare this with the original Miles Bitches Brew album it really doesn't make a lot of sense. "Pharaoh's Dance" has a trippy-er almost Future Sound Of London or mid-period Orb feel to it.


Each member stands out on multiple levels here. Hagans trumpet is heavier and dense on "Bitches Brew" while being wrapped in some cosmic linear passages from Kinsey and Licata. Belden's performance is killer with some really swirling, psychedelic melody. "Spanish Key" is awesome with a real dose of "drum and bass" which transforms the piece and makes it almost unrecognizable from the original.

Agemo is the expected and well deserved remix of the album over two discs. While the first disc is not drastically different, the mix adds a touch of midtempo range to Asiento versions thanks to the same production company that sound mixed the Orb's Metallic Spheres release. And in the case of "Spanish Key," transform it into a more raucous affair. On "Bitches Brew," Belden, Garrison and Hagans all seem to get a rising emphasis in this mix.


The keyboards were always hauntingly beautiful on the Asiento version but on tracks like "John McLaughlin" they feel very much in tune with the dream-like state of Miles originally conjured up four decades ago. "Miles Runs The Voodoo Down" retains the acid blues vibe it always had. Here it's driven more by Hagans and DJ Logic whom both create a sweet counterpoint that is stunning, screaming out of the stereo as well as the headphones.


The second disc really transforms into something different. Spanning dub, ambient and dance. "Bitches Brew" gets a weird and highly interesting dub reggae beat. "Miles Runs The Voodoo Down" turns into a funky orbital trip psych-out. And "Sanctuary" becomes an even slower hypnotic trance of a piece. Expertly done mixes by the likes of Bill Laswell, Joe Claussell and DJ Logic make Agemo a superior remix album than even Laswell's Panthalassa.

Asiento and Agemo are two seriously deserving documents in the ever-expanding understanding and reinterpretation of Miles Davis' seminal statement. This is a totally different way of thinking about Bitches Brew. Animation have created two albums that stand alone from their originating base work and serve as a groovy introduction to one of the best jazz albums ever recorded.

Amy Cervini: Digging Me, Digging You

Amy Cervini (vocals)

Digging Me, Digging You (Anzic Records; 2012)

The first great record of 2012! As you may have noticed I don't write that much about vocalists. I really haven't been able to find great current vocalists (or even good) that compare to Stacey Kent and Claire Martin and Karrin Alysson. So this month my hyperbolic pretentiousness was slapped upside the head when I put Amy Cervini's latest, Digging Me, Digging You in the CD player.

I've really only heard Amy Cervini's music a couple of times but didn't pay close enough attention until now. And I have to say I've been missing out on an extremely inventive and dynamic performer. Her voice is soft but packs the punch. Her choice in repertoire is what really threw me for a loop. And will probably do the same for you. We're not talkin' bout the Great American or sultry Latin Songbooks anymore. This is an artist who is out to change the way we think about what can be done with song. She has covered Depeche Mode and The Cardigans of late. Both with startling success as far how the material turned out. But on her Digging Me, Digging You, Cervini dives into one of the more under appreciated jazz vocalists, the late Blossom Dearie.

Blossom Dearie was the hipsters choice and while she is worshiped within jazz circles I just don't think she gets enough credit outside like many of the other female legends do. Hopefully Cervini will change that. "Everything I Got Belongs To You" sets the stage for this session. It's got a jump swing feel but is masterfully soulful under Cervini's direction. It's an easy relaxing opening that pulls you in with some great wind-work by Anat and Avishai Cohen and then upbeat guitar from Jesse Lewis. The emotional and crisp touch of Cervini's vocals on Blossom Dearie, Herb Alpert penned, "I Like You, You're Nice" feels more full-bodied than the original but you can sense the comparisons and why this album can be become an important step in Cervini's wider recognition.

"My Attorney Bernie" is a full-throttle swing, drivin' by Bruce Barth (piano) and Matt Wilson (drums). Cervini's really belts it out which is a little different than the original which keeps things a little light but the two definite stand on there own. Many will be familiar with the playfulness of the "Doodlin' Song" and this might be were both Dearie and Cervini do become one. The punch I talked about earlier is on display here. This is one of those great jazz club songs that becomes infectious by the second verse. "Figure Eight" is where Cervini displays a panache for creativity. This piece is slowed down even more than the slower original. It allows the orchestra and vocalist to both find their space and both deliver with elegance and beauty.

Digging Me, Digging You is a brilliant work of vocal beauty and composition choices. I am very happy to have stumbled onto a new and exciting vocalist such as Amy Cervini. I think you will be too. Digging Me, Digging You will be on my list of top albums in twelve months. Guaranteed. Highly Recommended.