The Thing w/Neneh Cherry: The Cherry Thing

The Thing w/Neneh Cherry
The Cherry Thing (Smalltown Supersound; 2012)
The Cherry Thing Remixes (Smalltown Supersound; 2012)
Neneh Cherry (vocals)
Ingebright Haker-Flaten (bass)
Paal Nilssen-Love (drums)
Mats Gustafsson (sax)

For a group that has already covered Groove Armada, PJ Harvey as well as reconstructing free jazz over the last 15 years in various forms, The Thing teaming up with avant punk, soul wordsmith, Neneh Cherry is really nothing out of the ordinary. Together they have created the poetic, Cherry Thing. And it really demands your attention.

A rustic fusion of love and social consciousness through Cherry's lyrics and The Thing's ability to timely move from gentle to aggressive with superb balance. "Cashback" illustrates this agility with funk and free thinking and harsh lyrical content that knocks you back and keeps you fully engaged. Nilssen-Love, Gustafsson and Haker Flaten cut a crisp and incisive groove that on "Too Tough To Die" (written by Martina Topley Bird). With Cherry at the helm, she and the trio really make the piece their own. Slightly unrecognizable but completely excellent.

The ballad "What Reason Could I Give" beautifully closes the session with shimmering echo treatments on Cherry's vocals with an emotional backdrop of notes by the trio. Lovely stuff.

What better way to follow this superb session than with an equally unexpected but blistering re-interpretation, The Cherry Thing Remixes. Opening the album with the lovely closing number of the original "What Reason Could I Give" is even more haunting with muted and echo chamber piano notes clashing against 80's electro drums. Really turns the piece into a ghostly journey through love and despair.

"Accordion" is fierce with a mixture of pulverizing keyboards and treble effects that later creates a dreamlike atmosphere for a piece that originally hung on Cherry's rhymes. Now, engulfed in anthematic electronics yet still holding its effectiveness. "Golden Heart" is layered with tribal beats and wah wah guitars creating a hypnotic mixture that slowly builds but never overspills. Just as intense as the original but with more of a swirling romanticism.

One of my favourite groups, The Thing continue to do the creative and the challenging with every project. In both The Cherry Thing and The Remixes they have managed to capture the vibe of the avant garde and the dance floor with unbelievable results. These are two richly rewarding projects that should not be missed.

McPhee & Haker-Flaten: Brooklyn DNA

Joe McPhee (sax, trumpet)

Ingebrigt Haker-Flaten (bass)

Brooklyn DNA (Clean Feed; 2012)

Revolving around the organic energy of Brooklyn (a borough of New York City), Joe McPhee and Ingebrigt Haker-Flaten create a work that is inspired by their surroundings as well as their jazz forefathers. Brooklyn DNA is one of those shining beacons that helps others see the vibrancy and diversity of New York free form scene.

"Crossing The Bridge" and "Spirit Cry" quietly bring the listener into the spacious and inventive quarters of these renown musicians. A playful march with beautiful intersecting lines by McPhee that connect the two opening pieces with crisp fluidity. Haker-Flaten's bass lines, while improvised, are subtle but matches McPhee chords with every step.

The ballad "Blue Coronet," dedicated to the famous jazz club of the '60s, is a late night walk on the streets, feeling the vibe of the neighborhood and how it influences your sound and vision. "Here And Now" is the perfect conclusion to this journey. A number that embodies the jazz scene today while still reflective of the traditions it's built on. Calm improvisational chords by both musicians bold lines and immediacy as the piece reaches its latter stages.

Brooklyn DNA is not just a travelogue through the boroughs great jazz history, its a document of the quiet brilliance of two intercontinental musicians. Highly Recommended.

The Thing: Mono

The Thing (group)

Mono (SmallTown Jazz; 2011)

Mats Gustafsson (sax)

Ingebrigt Haker-Flaten (bass)

Paal Nilssen-Love (drums)

Gustafsson, Haker-Flaten and Nilssen-Love return in the best way possible--in mono. Mono is the trio's 9th (or 12th if you consider their three disc boxed set, Now And Forever)  album, and it delivers with interesting and exciting results. Mono is raw as ever and captures the grit of their musicianship more so than recent recordings. If that was possible. 

The funky thumping of Haker-Flaten and Gustafsson's cattle call on the opener, "Viking" signifies a pulsating and exciting experience in store for you the listener at home. It's a blistering piece that only settles at the very end. "Bruremarsj" is calm and reflective. A ballad if I could use the term loosely. Soft movements and some breathy intonations from Gustafsson, circular rotations from Nilssen-Love and almost lower registered touches on the strings from Haker-Flaten make this a deeply personal and resonate experience. 

"Silver Slipper" while the shortest piece on the album provides all the aggression The Thing have come to represent--white noise, bliss and adventure. "There is Shitloads of Red Meat Missing" see the group experimenting with sound and texture. Gustafsson horn ripples along like slow water torture. Flaten and Love provide a haunting backdrop of vibrations that help close out the session. 

There's definitely shades of Ornette in the The Thing DNA but they continue to make themselves stand as one of the best European trio on the scene today. Mono is just another supreme work in a cannon that doesn't seem to stop astounding. Excellent stuff.