As of 2009, Ellery Eskelin and his band mates have been playing together for fifteen years with no let up in sight—good news for advocates of cutting-edge, progressive jazz and improvisation. Recorded live at Towson University in saxophonist Eskelin's home town of Baltimore, Maryland, the trio's multitasking ways come to fruition during this near flawlessly recorded live date.
It's a very special band, indeed. Whether executing impressionistic sub-themes, or going for the proverbial jugular, the unit always transmits a myriad of cleverly articulated persuasions. Once again, Andrea Parkins conjures up numerous contrasts by toggling between accordion, keys, and her laptop sampler. Hence, the trio proceeds to stimulate the senses via a sequence of quirky and odd-metered song-forms, occasionally spiced with eerie treatments and Eskelin's fierce soloing spots.
On "For No Good Reason," Parkins hammers out massive block chords on piano while Eskelin's angular and fluent attack is modified by abrupt u-turns atop drummer Jim Black's variable backbeats. The trio delves into circular and rather mesmeric patterns generating a horde of polytonal contrasts, also rendering dirge-like movements and mixing it all up with an aerial assault of power-packed improvisational encounters. Unanticipated surprises are in abundance, as the unit's overall approach remains remarkably cohesive.
Black's scrappy polyrhythmic solo on "Split The Difference" offers a segue into "Instant Counterpoint," where Eskelin adds fuel to the fire. The trio designs a continual reengineering process amid Parkins' bizarre sampling, along with frameworks that touch upon avant-minimalism. Strangely enough, the three-piece often sounds like a larger ensemble due to Parkins' wide-ranging arsenal of implements and the artists' loose-groove manner of spinning a unison chorus.
This live date highlights the trio's all-encompassing aura, which, of course, initiates a singular identity that is realized by few, if any, of its peers. Ultimately, the performers abide by a dynamic that presents an abundance of beguiling propositions.
