Ken Serio: Drumspeak (2008)

Glenn Astarita

Senior Contributor since 1997

Longtime contributor to AAJ and Downbeat, Jazz Review, EjazzNews, Radio DirectX.

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Published: January 21, 2008

New York area drummer/percussionist Ken Serio has packed gobs of musicality into a His mode of delivery sports an evolutionary outlook, partly due to his keen use of depth and space. With an arsenal of percussion implements, Serio pursues colorific and highly-rhythmic tone poems, featuring a layered approach and regimented patterns.

On "Part II, Serio uses an electric-slide guitar for a textural effect amid clashing cymbals and a heartbeat pulse, all spiced with an ethereal backwash of multihued sounds. Then on "Part III, the artist employs hand drums, bells, shakers, and perhaps some MIDI-based processing effects to instill a sense of cosmic travel. But he pulls out the proverbial stops on "Part IV, where his East Indian raga groove segues into a blitzing, mischievously, maniacal and polyrhythmic drum solo.

Serio's jazz and jazz-fusion chops are shrewdly counterbalanced on this most compelling effort. You don't need to be a drummer to comprehend and enjoy the musicality he communicates during his four-part panorama, that parallels the rhythm of life. Unlike many of his peers who venture into these lone forays, Serio projects a complementary balance among innumerable factors and practices. Moreover, the artist provides a mini-clinic for aspiring percussionists. Hopefully this gem of a record won't go unnoticed.

Track Listing: Part I; Part II; Part III; Part IV.

Personnel: Ken Serio: all instruments.

Record Label: Tripping Tree Music
Style: Beyond Jazz