Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Christophe Rocher / Joe Fonda / Harvey Sorgen: New Origin

4

Christophe Rocher / Joe Fonda / Harvey Sorgen: New Origin

By

View read count
Christophe Rocher / Joe Fonda / Harvey Sorgen: New Origin
As the title implies, New Origin represents a fertile coming together, the principals in this case being the veteran American rhythm team of bassist Joe Fonda and drummer Harvey Sorgen, with French clarinetist Christophe Rocher. Fonda and Sorgen share a lengthy association, which encompasses the long-running Fonda/Stevens Group and a trio of more recent vintage with pianist Marilyn Crispell among others. Rocher, a generation younger, has risen on his native scene and also featured alongside the likes of flautist Nicole Mitchell and cornetist Rob Mazurek.

As with many projects in which Fonda is involved, there is a strong inside/outside vibe, prominently displayed on a program of six originals, one cover, and five collective inventions. But whatever their genesis, what links the dozen cuts is the marvellous interplay between the threesome, which makes the compositions sound as fresh and newly-minted as the improvisations. Fonda and Sorgen are masters of a restless conversational swing which can take flight in any direction, with nowhere off limits, while Rocher shows himself to be their equal in his unbridled creativity and plentiful technique.

Fonda's "Read This" kick starts the album at a kinetic bounce, with Rocher channelling something of the old yet simultaneously modern approach of the late Perry Robinson, to whom the recording is dedicated. Paradoxically, the explicit dedication to the great clarinetist, "For Perry," is one of the more volatile numbers which pitches Rocher's bubbling bass clarinet against harsh bowed scrapes and spasmodic accents. That said, Rocher brings a hint of abstraction to whatever he plays, which works well against the funky vamp of "ZCNSY," though less so on the loose reading of Ornette Coleman's "Broken Shadows," where Fonda carries the aching melody.

Rocher's extemporized airs on the communal give-and-take of "Platte Cove" and the busy "Cosmonosis" add pleasingly cohesive touches to the freewheeling exchanges. Other notable episodes include a foray for Sorgen on Fonda's "Me," where his invigorating clatter forms the yin against the yang of a snaking clarinet and arco bass line which recalls Fonda's onetime employer Anthony Braxton. The Frenchman's "African Roll Mops" provides a smile-inducing upbeat canter on which Fonda enjoys a characteristically lyrical yet muscular excursion. This is a band which can tackle anything and which merits an ongoing existence.

Track Listing

Read This; Surely Attended; African Roll Mops; Berceuse; For Perry; Broken Shadows; Song For My Mother; Gastronomy; ZCNSY; Me; Platte Cove; Cosmonosis.

Personnel

Christophe Rocher: clarinets; Joe Fonda: bass; Harvey Sorgen: drums.

Album information

Title: New Origin | Year Released: 2019 | Record Label: Not Two Records

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT



Joe Fonda Concerts


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.