Rodrigo Amado's Motion Trio: Desire & Freedom

Portuguese saxophonist Rodrigo Amado's mark of distinction is generally centered on his assertive approaches to experimentation within numerous offshoots and slants of the jazz vernacular. He's become a major player on the Euro progressive jazz scene amid sessions with American free-thinking acolytes, trombonist Jeb Bishop, bassist John Hebert, trumpeter Dennis Gonzalez and many others of note. Here, Amado performs with his fellow countrymen for a blossoming asymmetrical affair, firmly rooted in a spirited free-form jaunt, teeming with buoyant flows and vibrant call and response mechanisms. Essentially, the trio is a perpetual motion machine.

"Liberty" is the second of the three extended pieces. It commences with a soft undertow, leading to a serrated ebb and flow via a few linear thematic flurries and undulating pulses. Moreover, drummer Gabriel Ferrandini uses his drum kit like a percussion arsenal, honed down by his ricocheting hits and clever use of cymbals as cellist Miguel Mira's pliant support adds to the trio's frothy presence. But Amado's soulful exhortations and melodic extended notes alleviate the musicians' largely ferocious attack, and they don't rest their laurels on one motif. Hence, the artists synch up their experimental sense of being and let it rip atop oscillating currents, which is a component that is quite prevalent throughout the entire program.

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