Brian Chase and David Remmick: Games are the Enemies of Truth, Beauty, and Sleep

One of the elements that makes the music known as the "avant-garde" or "free jazz" is the frequently long length of tracks. A cut that goes on for 10 minutes is not especially long in these styles but would be an epic piece if it were country, pop, rap, rock, etc. The situation becomes even more acute when tracks go on for 20, 30, 60 or even more minutes.

The duo of Brian Chase and David Remmick do their best to get around this problem on Games are the Enemies of Truth, Beauty, and Sleep. All but one of the 18 tracks come in at under 4 minutes with most being substantially shorter and the longer track being under 5 and a half minutes. While this gives the music a unique feel, it is the fine musicianship that makes this a stellar recording and what the disc deserves the most praise for. The first track opens with Chase playing a snare and cymbal variations while Remmick joins in with his eerie saxophone. The two quickly move on with Remmick appearing to be in the lead and Chase have the intelligence and talent to follow him every step of the way. Other tracks show similar interplay with a large degree of playfulness coming from each player. The brevity of each cut keeps the music from evolving into full-scale blowouts which is a tad disappointing if you like that particular musical manifestation since it appears that the duo could really tear it up if given the opportunity. Still the short lengths give each cut a degree of focus that is outstanding in its own right. There don't appear to many throwaway notes here as each seems to have a meaning and place within the larger context. The variety of musical sounds and emotions coming from the Chase and Remmick is also notable and speaks well of the each musician's ability. You can't go wrong with this disc!