Francois Houle & Havard Wiik: Aves

Francois Houle (clarinet)
Havard Wiik (piano)
Aves (Songlines Recordings; 2013)

Another exciting duo session from Francois Houle. This time he collides with versatile stylings of pianist, Havard Wiik. Together they emerge with the sublime, Aves. This is well crafted, well improvised session that melds classical and free jazz into a harmonious celebration.

"Nomenclatural" starts off quietly with a heavy melody that soon builds into a series of rolling counterpoints. Wiik and Houle seem to challenge each other at very turn with improvised notes that both offset and combine for a lovely high energy experience.

"Ged's Shadow" and "Letter for Gregory L" focus more on the simply sparse notes laid out by Wiik. Very emotional and dense, which allows the listener to sink deeply into their own darkness. Houle can be hear deep in the background (except towards the latter passages of Gregory) which makes both piece even more eerie and effective.

"Woodhoopoe" sees Houle playing various notes in a pattern which felt like a mixture of both classical, free form and African. There was beat that develops but more effectively "Woodhoopoe" doesn't feel like Houle on clarinet. It was reminiscent of recent work by Colin Stetson and his rotating breathing effects. A great solo piece.

I am a huge fan of Francois Houle and get excited by each release. With Aves, It feels as though his met another kinder counterpart along the lines of fellow collaborator, Benoit Delbecq that he can bounce ideas off. And the results is another fantastic and invigorating session that is well worth every one's time to seek out. Highly Recommended.

Side A: A New Margin

Side A (group)

A New Margin (Clean Feed; 2011)

Ken Vandermark (sax; clarinet)

Havard Wiik (piano)

Chad Taylor (drums)

A Ken Vandermark record is always a welcomed addition in the JazzWrap office. And Vandermark's newest project, Side A is a massive inclusion to the catalog.


The trio formed last year but somehow it feels like they've played together for much longer; Vandermark and Wiik have been together in various projects (Vandermark 5, Atomic/School Days, and Free Fall). A New Margin (Clean Feed), the trio's debut, is a document of their collaborative efforts over the last year. 

Side A kicks the proceedings off with the slow moving and haunting "Boxer." It's like a mystery ride that never seems to end and you're constantly turned on to some new element in the piece. Whether it's the plodding downward keys of Wiik, the sky-rocketing velocity of Vandermark on sax, or Taylor's free-wheeling movement on the kit--this is a journey that's going to take many different shapes before its done.


"Arborizaltion" flows peacefully with each member improvising in between the space. It's not wild movements; more a steady pattern of ideas that all fold together in one harmonic gesture.

When "The Kreuzberg Variations" first came on I was startled by the spacial depth of the piece. It's a classical movement as the title would suggest but with more owed to the Steve Reich motif than Brandenberg. The piece builds and builds until its boisterous conclusion where musician and sound collide in what is quite a beautiful noise.


"Giacometti" is a blustery but euphoric number that sees the trio bouncing sound off each other. Taylor adds a delicate touch in the beginning, while Vandermark and Wiik create some vivid colour spectrums. This comes to a rousing denouement that nicely bookends the possession filled opening of the "Boxer."

Side A is yet another in long list of progressive outings from Ken Vandermark and company that challenges the way we think of jazz and how it will expand. A New Margin is by far one Vandermark's best projects (outside of Vandermark 5) of the last 12 months. Great stuff.