Christy Doran's New Bag: Mesmerized

Celebrated Swiss guitarist Christy Doran assets pertain to his indefatigable creative sparks, evidenced by his work in jazz-rock, avant-garde jazz improvisation or when tackling world music. And from a fundamental shedding perspective, he could hold his own with most if not all of the present guitar heroes.

New Bag was created in 1997, but Swiss vocalist Sarah Buechi joined the ranks in 2012. Her presence is somewhat multifaceted as she harmonizes, scats, and often steers the melodies in unison with the soloists, where ultra-modern jazz-rock is shaded with avant deviations and alternating cadences. Hence, the musicians do not limit their scope of attack by residing within a finite presentation based on recurring patterns. With dashes of classic progressive rock, they also delve into free-flowing jazz improvisation and distortion tinged breakouts. Yet the progressive rock baseline is prominently communicated on "Three Punk Chords Tango." Here, drummer Lionel Friedli lays down a punchy backbeat after Membrez' quietly regal intro on Fender Rhodes, amped by Doran's howling, volume control techniques and adventurous phrasings, including wah-wah drenched licks. The quartet incorporates steely burnouts into the game-plan, including the guitarist's seething single note leads. Essentially, they shun most conventional implications amid Buechi's off- kilter upper-register lyricism leading towards the sweltering finale. For sure, it's a spicy brew concocted with a surfeit of divergent angles and full frontal assaults.