Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Sam Trapchak's Put Together Funny: Lollipopocalypse

121

Sam Trapchak's Put Together Funny: Lollipopocalypse

Sam Trapchak's Put Together Funny: Lollipopocalypse
Bassist Sam Trapchak's debut, Lollipopocalypse, is inspired by a character who experiences some very unsavory candy in the Toni Morrison novel Song of Solomon. But Trapchak and his curiously named group, Put Together Funny, dish out some palatable music with a release that is equally accessible and stimulating. Replete with infectious melodies, risk-taking compositions, and cohesive variety, the seven compositions are delivered by Trapchak's potent band members

Trapchak's lists Dave Holland as one of his influences in which similarities might be found: a fibrous bass tone, robust technique, and emotive playing. The music spans a wide spectrum of styles as evinced by the Afro Beat-centric "Different Dance" or the industrial strength rocker "On The Cusp of Cancer. " The former's signature is like the choreographed dance of a Senegalese dancer; whereas in the latter, the instruments move with a machine-like synchronicity.

The sensuous "Losing You" is reminiscent of a 1950's film noir classic—lush saxophone, whispering drum brushes, crooning guitar swells, and Trapchak's gently probing fingerings—that just oozes sexiness. "Tongue and Groove" and the title track are show stoppers that command respect as the band handles myriad tempo exchanges and searing solos. Greg Ward's alto is wonderful, having an expressiveness that is reminiscent of contemporaries such as Miguel Zenon. Tom Chang's fret-board wizardry encompasses excellent comping (almost a lost art with younger guitarists) and progressive rock chops, while Arthur Vint holds things together with a variety of intricate traps. But the glue that holds it all together is Trapchak, with leadership that's not only heard in his playing but also in the prowess of his compositions.

Track Listing

Different Dance; On The Cusp of Cancer; Long Live_Less Say; Tongue and Groove; Losing You; Precious Few; Lollipopocalypse.

Personnel

Arthur Vint: drums; Tom Chang: guitar; Greg Ward: saxophonist; Sam Trapchak: bass.

Album information

Title: Lollipopocalypse | Year Released: 2011 | Record Label: Raw Toast Records

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About 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 make 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.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves 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

Tramonto
John Taylor
Ki
Natsuki Tamura / Satoko Fujii
Duality Pt: 02
Dom Franks' Strayhorn
The Sound of Raspberry
Tatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

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

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.