Chris Abrahams and Dave Symes: Distant Birds, Vol. 01 & 02

Distant Birds, Vol. 01 & 02 is the result of a collaboration between keyboard player Chris Abrahams and bassist Dave Symes. Consisting of four long-form tracks that amount to a double vinyl or single CD, the album is a heady mix of keyboard textures and lithe bass lines with extended improvisations. The band's groove-driven soundscape is completed by the highly effective trio of drummer Evan Mannell , trumpeter Ellen Kirkwood and baritone saxophonist Matthew Ottignon.

With a career spanning four decades, New Zealand-born, Sydney-based pianist Abrahams is one of Australia's most distinctive keyboard players, exploring experimental jazz, ambient, and classical music along the way. Perhaps best known as a founding member of The The Necks, he uses Moog synthesizers, Fender Rhodes and Hammond organ to build his textures.

Renowned as a longtime member of the band Boy & Bear, Symes is no stranger to the charts. As a producer and arranger, he has worked across a number of genres, working with artists such as Missy Higgins and Keith Urban. Here he uses his rhythmic knowledge and invention to anchor the extended grooves.

Recorded live in single takes, the album opens with "Drill." The track sets the scene for the album with plump, cyclical bass lines mixed with Mannell's drums to build a mighty groove. Abrahams weaves in keyboard motifs as Kirkwood and Ottignon add layers of trumpet and saxophone. The interplay sees the instruments ebb and flow, move in different combinations, and subtly shift to build a hypnotic effect.

That hypnotic effect becomes more chilled with the more relaxed beats and ambient synthesizer explorations of "Sea Grass," occasionally punctuated by horn riffs. This is a track to lose yourself in. The dub-reggae-influenced "Spirit Level" builds a gentle groove and unfolds gradually with swirling keyboard textures. The horns dart between, adding emphasis to melodic motifs.

Mannell's hard-driving beat sets the tone for the final track, "Driver." Symes' terrific bass line merges with a swirling keyboard opening, while Abrahams moves to Fender Rhodes, building more textural depth. Trumpet and saxophone arrangements add a touch of swing as they float in and out.

In four tracks, all exceeding 15 minutes, all full of inventive moves, the band builds different structures to support their fluid, immersive rhythmic interplay. There is a sense of shared responsibility; improvisations are often extended but are incorporated into the overall sound world rather than being isolated. Hooks are plentiful, subtly threaded into the fabric of each track, as the album captures the band's inventive grooves and fluid energy in full flight.