Rempis Percussion Quartet: Harvesters

A couple quotes from the 1980s' film The Blues Brothers starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd seem appropriate for Harvesters, the double album by The Rempis Percussion Quartet. Elwood Blues: "It's 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark... and we're wearing sunglasses." Jake Blues: "Hit It...we're on a mission from God... we're getting the band back together."

In all actuality, the Chicago residents, saxophonist Dave Rempis and drummer Tim Daisy, were 4,143 miles from Tours, France where this recording was made in March of 2023, but they were indeed were getting the band back together after the global pandemic kept the players separate for the past four years. Rempis and Daisy reunited with Norwegian bassist Ingebrigt Håker Flaten and American drummer Frank Rosaly, who now lives in The Netherlands. This quartet is Rempis' longest lived ensemble, having formed in 2004 and released ten prior recordings, this being their sixth on Rempis' Aerophonic Records label.

Despite the passage of four years, the quartet picks up right where they left off with their prior release Sud Des Alpes (Aerophonic, 2021). Their music, the majority of which is instantly composed, deals with momentum and space. While Rempis' saxophones are front and center, there is a linkage to these performances that speaks to a total group sound. The opening track "Everything Happens To You," at nearly 30 minutes in length, pairs a blues feel à la Rahsaan Roland Kirk with a bustling percussion rattle. The quartet trades on velocity and momentum with Daisy and Rosaly heard in separate channels fueling the forward drive and Flaten as both time keeper and soloist and commentator. "The Exuberant Aubergine" adds guest flugelhorn and trumpeter Jean-Luc Cappozzo, a star of the French creative scene. The two horn front line expands the quartet's conversational methods as evidenced by the ease with which another voice can be integrated into the music making.

"Spooky Action" was recorded at a workshop for children, all recent migrants from Afghanistan, Syria, Sudan, Niger, and Senegal. It opens with a percussive duo that builds tension throughout its 26-minutes by accelerating and braking. Rempis gives a demonstration of his ability to bend and twist his saxophone sound around the percussive attack and maintain a coherent dialogue with his partners. The final two tracks were recorded without an audience and they are more reserved, yet evidence a the sensitive and insightful communications the quartet shares.

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