Grdina Maneri Lillinger: Live at the Armoury

In recent years, Gordon Grdina has proved himself to be as passionate as he is prolific, not to mention versatile. Further affirmation aplenty of all those virtues, the forty-five minutes of Live At The Armoury stand as a showcase not only for the Canadian's adept management of shared moments of spontaneity, but also for that of his collaborators.

During these kinetic interactions between Grdina and his two kindred spirits, viola player Mat Maneri and drummer Christian Lillinger, the guitarist & oudist never calls attention to himself. Nevertheless, the musician & bandleader displays an extremely self-aware humility, borne of diversified experience, which furthers his integration into ensembles large (Haram) and small (Nomad), besides nurturing savvy solo work such as Oddly Enough: The Music of Tim Berne (AttaBoyGirl Records, 2022).

Beginning (excruciatingly) slowly, as if to gauge the latitude of freedom the three can share, Grdina, Maneri and Lillinger do indeed "Conjure" on the co-authored composition of the same name. Coalescing and crystallizing through some fluid dissonance, the ensuing frenetic interplay on this first of three tracks becomes indicative of the logic in the sequencing of the recording.

Acoustic textures aside, the otherwise noisy "Ballistic" suggests the ebb and flow which takes place as the threesome moves inexorably but increasingly surely to higher plateaus. Quiet, almost plaintive moments occur in the progression, largely (and most vividly) courtesy of Maneri's viola; his interludes are the interpolations of dynamic pacing upon which such cooperative musicianship thrives.

The overtly assertive, terse intervals before and after thus become even more so, the alternating thrust of electric guitar and drums near piston-like in their action, this despite a relatively gentle touch Grdina and Lillinger share. Not one of the three overly dominates the proceedings or, conversely, inordinately retreats into the background, least of all its titular leader; an audio mix by John Raham, subsequently mastered by Lillinger, reveals the details of such relations.

Hence, it is only logical, perhaps even inevitable, that Grdina, Maneri and Lillinger conclude with a self-referential piece by the name of "Communion." Enacting such a meeting of minds (hearts, hands and feet) is exactly what they have accomplished here, emphatically to be sure, but with a measurable delicacy as well which is all the more worth savoring.