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Atlantic Road Trip: ONE
ByAtlantic Road Trip is first and foremost a trans-continental collaboration. Herak is from Slovakia, trumpeter Chad McCullough from Chicago, saxophonist Paul Towndrow and drummer Alyn Cosker from Scotland, and bassist Conor Murray from Ireland. Herak and McCullough met at Canada's Banff Center for the Arts in 2009, and Herak served as a catalyst for bringing the other members of the quintet on board. His instincts were spot on, as the partnership works extremely well.
The music on ONE is expansive, blending traditional Scottish and Slovakian themes within a contemporary jazz framework. Besides playing, Towndrow wrote four of the album's ten numbers, McCullough three others, while Herak composed the fast-paced and persuasive "Upside Down" and arranged the Slovak folk songs "Hore Haj, Dolu Haj" and "Kopala Studienko, Pozerala Do Nej." One thing that sets Road Trip apart from many groups its size, as noted above, is the contrast and color provided by Herak's nimble vibraphone, which enriches both melody and rhythm.
The other soloistsbasically McCullough and Towndroware akin to their contemporaries, interlacing bright and articulate comments throughout, while Murray and Cosker manage the rhythmic component with ease. After traversing the musical spectrum, the session closes with a brace of burners, "Upside Down" and McCullough's propulsive "Dreams of Matka." The album opens with yet another flag-waver, McCullough's "The Other Fulton Street," while Towndrow's "White Cart Water" has an explicit Irish flavor, his "Cacuvela" a brisk Latin undertone. As for the folk songs, they are simply lovely, with Towndrow moving between alto sax and flute to diversify the mood and tone.
Trans-national teamwork, it should be noted, can often lead to an impressive outcome, which is certainly true of ONE, an exemplary debut album by the masterful quintet Atlantic Road Trip.
Track Listing
The Other Fulton Street; Nightingale Island; Hore Háj, Dolu Háj; Pale Ale (Pale Ale / Dr. Jones Never Saw It Coming); Auburn; Cacuvela; Kopala Studienku, Pozerala Do Nej; White Cart Water (Cathcart / White Cart Water); Upside Down; Dreams of Matka.
Personnel
Atlantic Road Trip
band / ensemble / orchestraPaul Towndrow
saxophone, altoChad McCullough
trumpetMiro Herak
vibraphoneAlbum information
Title: ONE | Year Released: 2023 | Record Label: Calligram Records
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About Atlantic Road Trip
Instrument: Band / ensemble / orchestra
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