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Stephan Crump: Rosetta
ByCrump plays acoustic bass along with two collaborators, guitarists Liberty Ellman (acoustic ) and Jamie Fox (electric), but unlike typical guitar ensembles, the combination of the electric instrument with its acoustic siblings imparts a unique timbre to the music's sound. The woodiness of the bass, the electric's amplified sound, and the acoustic guitar's tone are oddly but perfectly matched as each musician brings his own considerable skills to the music.
The aptly titled "Tag finds the stringed instruments playfully chasing each other with quick solos. One of the more striking pieces is "Were it a Loss, which begins somberly, but then spreads into multiple threads where the musicians swap patterns, then resumes the starting phrase. Even Crump's funky bass pattern on "Kudzu is slightly out in the twilight zone as Foxx and Ellman detune and play in odd octaves.
There are many pieces where the harmony of the instruments creates warmth and familiarity, like "Rosie, which sounds like a bluegrass ballad in a pastoral setting; Fox's guitar twangs soulfully as Crump and Ellman bring their own stories to the tune. Running the gamut from the rustically familiar to the surreal dreams of the closing melody, Rosetta is a unique experience.
Track Listing
Tag; Were it a Loss; Rosetta; Kudzu; Carrousel en Verre; Rosie; Residual; Our Survival; Ing
Personnel
Stephan Crump
bassStephan Crump: bass; Liberty Ellman: acoustic guitar; Jamie Fox: electric guitar.
Album information
Title: Rosetta | Year Released: 2006 | Record Label: Papillon Sounds
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