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Brooklyn Jazz Underground: Brooklyn Jazz Underground: Volume 1
By"Jim White" is at a dirge tempo, has no solo section and is through-composed. On the surface, it's not muchEndsley's tone is too blatty and flat to carry the harmonybut the meaning of the piece is what matters. Far from being a quirky blemish on the record, what quickly emerges in the four-minute piece is the basis for the entire release: in the Brooklyn Jazz Underground, jazz has ten different definitions. "Jim White is the rule, not the exception.
Drummer Sunny Jain's definition of jazz includes a reverb-laden guitar and a sitar drone. His introduction to "Johnnie Black" is a slow unfurling of melodic ideas, an exploration of mood. After picking up speed, adding jumpy percussion hits and a bass vamp, everything suddenly stops, only to explode into an amalgamation of sound: a pure sonic mess. Out of the ashes emerges an upbeat tenor line which mirrors the pattern of Jain's snare drum. An exercise in contrasts, the ethereal guitar work returns for a slowed down solo section.
Yet another definition comes from Dan Pratt's tenor. Short organ punchesa fast funky groovelay the base for "20/20." Pratt enters in unison with trombonist Ferber, and the two lay down a playful melody, both starting high and tumbling down their respective ranges. This is as far removed from Endsley's chorale as possible, but it still belongs under the same heading.
Though each track is a separate composition, many Underground members play on different tunes. This does nothing to detract from the uniqueness of the collection, and the musicians treat each composition as separate but equal. There is no attempt to make the release a cohesive unit; it's a compilation, and the variety of styles and ideas about jazz reinforce this goal.
Track Listing
El Gran Profeta; Jim White; Filin; Where to Place the House; Johnnie Black; Kailash; Sign of the Times; Wade; 20/20; North.
Personnel
Brooklyn Jazz Underground
variousAlexis Cuadrado: bass (1, 3); John Ellis: tenor saxophone (1, 3, 4); Alan Ferber: trombone (1, 3, 9); Kris Bauman: alto saxophone (1); Steve Cardenas: guitar (1); Mark Ferber: drums (1, 3, 9); Shane Endsley: trumpet (2); Joe Lukasik: tenor saxophone (2); Mark Harris: bass clarinet (2); Wade Sander: trombone (2); David Smith: trumpet (3); Will Vinson: alto saxophone (3); Douglas Yates: bass clarinet (3); Bruce Saunders: guitar (3); Bryn Roberts: piano (3); Anne Mette Iversen: bass (4); Danny Grissett: piano (4); Otis Brown III: drums (4); Sunny Jain: drums/laptop (5); Rez Abbasi: sitar (5); Steve Welsh: tenor saxophone (5); Gary Wang: bass (5); Tanya Kalmanovitch: viola (6); Myra Melford: piano (6); Benny Lackner: piano (7); Derek Nievergelt: bass (7); Rob Perkins: drums (7); Ted Poor: drums (8, 10); Ben Monder: guitar (8, 10); Ike Strum: bass (8); Matt Blanchard: tenor saxophone (8); Eric Biondo: trumpet (8); Dan Pratt: tenor saxophone (9); Jared Gold: organ (9); Jerome Sabbaagh: tenor saxophone (10); Joe Martin: bass (10).
Album information
Title: Brooklyn Jazz Underground: Volume 1 | Year Released: 2007 | Record Label: Brooklyn Jazz Underground Records
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About Brooklyn Jazz Underground
Instrument: Various
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