Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Dom Minasi & Juampy Juarez: Freeland

4

Dom Minasi & Juampy Juarez: Freeland

By

Sign in to view read count
Dom Minasi & Juampy Juarez: Freeland
American guitarist Dom Minasi and Argentinian guitarist Juampy Juarez have performed as a duet several times, first during a tour in Buenos Aires, then at some shows in New York. Recorded in Buenos Aires, in April 2018, Freeland documents their playing partnership. Minasi has a history of duets, most recently on record with guitarist Jack DeSalvo on Soldani Dieci Anni (Unseen Rain Records, 2016). Like that album, the program here is much more diverse than its title suggests.

Minasi's beautiful ballad "Angela" (which he has recorded before) opens the set, and shows both players in lyrical form. This track would be right at home on a mainstream bebop guitar album, complete with sparkling harp harmonics at the end. His "Blues, Blues, Blues" delivers what the title promises (albeit with a distinctly Monkish flavor), but it also has edgy moments well outside the traditional blues box, especially a wild, dissonant duet section.

Two brief improvisations occupy the center point of the album. After a rubato opening, the first develops into an intense rhythmic workout. The second is much more reflective, and concludes with more of those lovely harmonic arpeggios. Minasi's "Inside Out" is another memorable ballad (which recalls the Thelonious Monk standard "'Round Midnight"), and it elicits more expressive melodic invention from both players.

Juarez makes his sole compositional contribution with "Tritonal Ballad," a piece heavy on the tritones and light on ballad feeling. It has a distinctive harmonic signature, more "out" than the straight jazz tunes but less harmonically unpredictable than the freer playing. There were numerous Monk references throughout the session, but the finale finally gets to the real thing: a gleeful romp through "Well, You Needn't," with the players egging each other on to further and further extensions of the original harmony.

Contemporary jazz guitar playing doesn't get much better than this. An easy recommendation to guitar fans who like their bebop with a bit of spice.

Track Listing

Angela; Blues, Blues, Blues; Brown Eyes; Improv 1; Improv 2; Inside Out; Tritonal Ballad; Well You Needn’t.

Personnel

Album information

Title: Freeland | Year Released: 2019 | Record Label: Cirko Records

Comments

Tags


For the Love of Jazz
Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

What Was Happening
Bobby Wellins Quartet
Laugh Ash
Ches Smith
A New Beat
Ulysses Owens, Jr. and Generation Y

Popular

Eagle's Point
Chris Potter
Light Streams
John Donegan - The Irish Sextet

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.