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Black Art Jazz Collective: Ascension
ByAs is the nature of collectives, the BAJC's personnel has changed since its inception, with drummer Mark Whitfield, Jr. replacing Blake, Rashaan Carter replacing Vicente Archer on bass, and Victor Gould taking over the piano stool of Xavier Davis. Up front, trombonist James Burton III forms a powerful trident with Escoffery and Pelt, and their harmonic and melodic lines forge sophisticated and uplifting intros and outros to the sextet's hard-bop format.
In between, the music follows a broadly unchanging pattern of solo relays, with no sparring or cut-and-thrust to enliven the tableau. Even Burton's "Tulsa," inspired by the horrifying Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921, when as many as 300 black people were murdered by a rampaging white mob, follows the prevailing pattern, where instead some cacophony or dissonance might have served the spirit of the tune better. Ditto Escoffery's "Involuntary Servitude," which is neither blues lament nor particularly impassioned protestdespite Whitfield Jr.'s effortsagainst the unfulfilled promises of the American Constitution.
And this is where Ascension, rather than soar, tends to plateau rather predictably. Although four of the sextet members share composing duties, the hard-bop blueprint of head-solo-solo-head reduces much of the music to a homogenous collective formula. The one occasion when the horns do threaten to unleash some serious jousting is in the fade-out to "Iron Man," while Pelt's impressionistic, miniature ballad "No Words Needed" and the smooth neo-soul of "For the Kids"featuring Gould on electric pianoare the only pieces to veer significantly from the hard-bop mould.
Within these stylistic limitations, however, there is some excellent playing, as you might reasonably expect from such top-notch musicians, with the bustling Whitfield Jr. in particular, impressive throughout. Recommended for straight-ahead aficionados.
Track Listing
Ascension; Mr. Willis; Involuntary Servitude; Twin Towers; No Words Needed; Tulsa; Iron Man; For the Kids; Birdie’s Bounce.
Personnel
Jeremy Pelt
trumpetWayne Escoffery
saxophone, tenorVictor Gould
pianoJames Burton
tromboneRashaan Carter
bass, acousticMark Whitfield, Jr.
drumsAlbum information
Title: Ascension | Year Released: 2020 | Record Label: HighNote Records
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Jeremy Pelt
Album Review
Ian Patterson
Ascension
HighNote Records
Wayne Escoffery
Jonathon Blake
Art Blakey
Mark Whitfield Jr.
Rashaan Carter
Vicente Archer
Victor Gould
Xavier Davis
James Burton III