Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Mark O' Leary -- Eyvind Kang -- Dylan Van Der Schyff: Zemlya

140

Mark O' Leary -- Eyvind Kang -- Dylan Van Der Schyff: Zemlya

By

Sign in to view read count
Mark O' Leary -- Eyvind Kang -- Dylan Van Der Schyff: Zemlya
This newly formed trio's 2008 release is thematically based upon a frigid pair of islands off the Russian coast. In turn, the artist and his venerable improvising/progressive-jazz associates weave a musically chilling panorama via spacey backdrops and tumultuous three-way dialogues. At times, they invoke danger, as if they're warning the listener to proceed with caution.



Guitarist Mark O'Leary's mastery of volume control techniques is in full stride. And with violist Eyvind Kang also injecting effects processing into the grand mix, the music iterated here is spiced with ethereal passages and torridly enacted, linear phrasings. Meanwhile, drummer Dylan Van Der Schyff's asymmetrical rhythmic palate enables the soloists to expand and constrict motifs, where the trio element often sounds significantly larger than might be anticipated.



They propagate cataclysmic frontiers, laced with ominous undertones, but O'Leary and Kang also engage in some quasi-folk passages amid a few daintily rendered string-plucking maneuvers. Otherwise, the band dissects and reshapes a myriad of tonal contrasts during "Story of Iceland," enhanced by the guitarist's skyward surge atop Kang's subtle and contrapuntal viola lines.



The instrumentalists navigate through turbulent currents and expansive tundras while balancing out the grand schema with hints of avant-garde-shaded world music. In a lucid sense, the artists transmit notions of a topographical icescape—firmed up with vast expressionism and mind-twisting ebbs and flows. Hence, an early top-ten contender, within the improvisational arena, for 2008...

Track Listing

Zemlya; Vashon; Impish; Story of Iceland pt 2; Karyobia; Sorcery; Kith and kin; Meekong Delta Blues; Anorak.

Personnel

Mark O’Leary: guitar; Eyvind Kang: viola, processing; Dylan Van Der Schyff: drums, percussion, laptop.

Album information

Title: Zemlya | Year Released: 2008 | Record Label: Leo Records

Comments

Tags


For the Love of Jazz
Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Sensual
Rachel Z
Over and Over
Tony Monaco Trio
Love Is Passing Thru
Roberto Magris

Popular

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.