Category Archives: New Listen

album review series

New Listen: Elton John’s ‘The Diving Board’

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divingboard

Artist: Elton John
Album: The Diving Board (2013)

The Tin Pan Alley Twins strike again, and strongly so. Elton’s recently released The Diving Board is a strong addition to a large, eclectic catalogue that spans five decades. Like many of his musical peers (of which there are few), he’s often saddled with the stereotype of being a legacy act – a touring, nostalgic jukebox of greatest hits. He may continue to sing “Your Song” at just about every performance, but he and lyricist Bernie Taupin are writing some of their strongest material almost fifty years after meeting. I’ve had The Diving Board since its 09.24 US release and can’t get enough.

[I wrote about his previous album The Union, a collaboration with Leon Russell, soon after its release here.]

The Diving Board features John continuing his relationship with producer T. Bone Burnett, which began with The Union. Also, like The Union, The Diving Board features quasi-Americana and gospel-tinged themes reminiscent of much of Elton’s early material. (If you’re not too familiar with his deep cuts, his second through fifth albums – Elton John, Tumbleweed Connection, Madman Across the Water, Honky Chateau – are rife with great piano-driven country rock songs.) Furthermore, The Diving Board is heavily piano-centric. While that may at first seem obvious, many of Elton’s albums feature such large bands and/or heavy production that his instrument is often obscured. Many of his early performances, including his US debut at The Troubadour in 1970 (also attended by T. Bone Burnett), featured a piano trio. In instrumentation and style, Elton is returning to his roots, even more so than with The Union.

The Union casts a small shadow here, mainly in tone. Though I’m sure that’s Burnett’s touch. Stylistically the album is a mix of The Union, Madman Across the Water, Tumbleweed Connection, and The Captain & The Kid. The album’s consistent core is the piano trio of Elton, bassist Raphael Saadiq, and drummer Jay Bellerose. (Bellerose also performed on The Union.) It’s a noticeable departure from Elton’s touring band, which features decades-long collaborators Davey Johnstone (guitar) and Nigel Olsson (drums, who has played with Elton since 1969’s Empty Sky). Other instruments – strings, brass, background vocals, occasional guitar – are used throughout the album, but sparingly so and without obscuring the core trio. When used, the guitar is still playing second to the piano, and the orchestral instruments are there primarily for texture. This relatively stripped down sound is more akin to a club than an arena or stadium. Make no mistake, however, because many of the songs groove hard.

Band aside, Elton himself sounds real nice. He long ago had to trade in his soaring tenor range for a silky baritone, and it’s on wonderful display here. This is evident right from the beginning with the gentle and nostalgic “Ocean’s Away,” the album’s overture featuring only Elton on voice and piano. Then, bit by bit, the rest of the the band joins in on the haunting but hard-driving “Oscar Wilde Gets Out.” This ode to the Irish writer is the sort of brooding saloon romp that conjures the best of The Union and Tumbleweed Connection. This is followed by the gospel-tinged “A Town Called Jubilee,” the first joyous number, with Taupin painting images of the open West. Taupin continues the Americana with “The Ballad of Blind Tom,” an ode to pianist Blind Tom Wiggins. The song’s narrative reads and sounds as if it were written for a musical, but it’s an effective standalone work. Elton keeps up the gospel- and old school country-influenced stylings on “Take This Dirty Water” and “Mexican Vacation (The Kids in the Candlelight).”

“Home Again,” the album’s first single, is a top shelf ballad that I’m sure will quickly find itself in his Greatest Hits canon. Single or not, it’s a crown jewel of the album and one of the best songs Elton’s written in years. “The New Fever Waltz” and “My Quicksand” are the other ballads, with the latter being the album’s weakest link for me. For those looking for a more recent “Elton sound” a la Songs From the West Coast or The Captain & The Kid, “Can’t Stay Along Tonight” and “Voyeur” scratch that adult contemporary itch. There are also three standalone instrumental interludes, each being a numbered “Dream.” None are as robust as “Funeral for a Friend,” but each provides a nice respite while moving the action along. The album closes with the title track, a mellow lounge number suggestive of a last call.

This could be my favorite of Elton’s late-era albums. If you’ve kept a safe distance from his recent output, this could be your foot in the door. As for me, I’m going to give it yet another spin…

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New Listen: Chris Potter’s ‘The Sirens’

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It’s only April, but I suspect that The Sirens will be one of my favorite albums of 2013.

As mentioned here, I’ve been excited for its release for a while. The Sirens includes many wonderful ingredients: Chris Potter‘s first album as a leader on ECM (with Manfred producing, of course), supported by a heavy backing band – Craig Taborn, David Virelles, Larry Grenadier, and Eric Harland – of a younger generation more akin to Chris Potter than ECM’s old guard. This lineup collectively spans a wide range of ECM’s output, from Charles Lloyd to Dave Holland to Tomasz Stanko to Evan Parker.

Personnel:
Chris Potter – soprano and tenor saxophones, bass clarinet
Craig Taborn – piano
David Virelles – prepared piano, celeste, harmonium
Larry Grenadier – bass
Eric Harland – drums

As one might guess from the album title, The Sirens is evocative of Odysseus’s journey in The Odyssey. In this New York Times interview, Potter clarifies that he wanted to capture moods and impressions rather than compose a programmatic suite à la Berlioz or Wagner. So, although the song titles make specific references, I don’t suggest scouring your copy of The Odyssey line by line with a red pen for each note’s meaning.

One of my favorite aspects of the album is how effectively the musicians paint the various moods and sonic landscapes. Integral to their success is the orchestration. Upon first glance, one could easily dismiss the inclusion of prepared piano, celeste, and harmonium as gimmicky. Virelles, however, couldn’t be more tasteful. He serves a primarily textural function throughout, appearing only when appropriate and rarely in the foreground. One piece in particular in which the orchestration stands out is the title track. Almost nine minutes long, “The Sirens” is without rhythmic pulse. Both beautiful and mournful – much as the Siren’s call and her victim’s fate – it begins with bass clarinet, piano, harmonium, cymbals, and bowed bass (played arco throughout this number). Tension builds in the middle as the bass solos over the ensemble (sans Potter), building in tension until the tenor sax emerges for the final, “Psalm”-esque calls, with Harland now incorporating his full kit. “The Sirens,” together with the following number “Penelope,” a beautiful ballad featuring Potter on soprano, are the centerpiece of the album (and my personal favorites).

All’s not slow and mellow, however. After a soulful full-group introduction, Grenadier then sets the groove for the band to plow ahead on the album’s moderate opener “Wine Dark Sea.” The rhythm section’s interplay, coupled with Potter’s funky, frenetic bursts help the album to set sail.”Wayfinder” continues to march along, featuring an engaging keyboard duet (with rhythm section) between Taborn on piano and Virelles on prepared piano and celeste. The first time I listened to this album, I knew I bought something special when I was halfway through this track. “Dawn (With Her Rosy Fingers)” is the first ballad, preparing the listener for “The Sirens” and “Penelope.” “Kalypso” is the most straight ahead tune on the album. (Though with this band, and Taborn especially, things are never that straight ahead, even in calypso-esque territory.) Back on tenor, Potter’s trademark calisthenics really shine here, as his unparalleled altissimo skills come out to play. Again, as with the rest of this release, taste governs. He’s not showing off; he’s being musical. “Nausikaa” is a lovely gem. A mostly sparse rhythm section supports soprano, piano, and celeste in evoking a starry night sky. The orchestration is dreamy. “The Stranger At The Gate” is the band’s farewell as the musicians plod along on their journey. While a standalone piece, the tempo and rhythms are reminiscent of “Wine Dark Sea,” perhaps signaling the traveler moving on to the next stage of his journey. Finally, “The Shades” – a contemplative improvisation by Taborn and Virelles only – serves as a calm yet haunting coda.

I can’t recommend this album enough. Nor can I listen to it enough! If you’re looking for some new and different jazz, then you simply must purchase this.

Album background by ECM

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New Listen: The Fencemen’s ‘Times Are Alright’

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[Disclaimer: I am associated with this band and album (one song). But don’t let that fool you; I’m writing from purely a listener’s – fan‘s – perspective.]

Artist: The Fencemen
Album: Times Are Alright (2012)

Get ready to rock. Hard.

Lansing’s The Fencemen have been stomping around Michigan since late 2010. Clocking in at just under 38 minutes, their debut album packs a tight, mean punch. The quartet wrote and recorded Times Are Alright throughout 2011 and into the first part of this year. Although it’s the band’s first album, the individual members are hardly novices, bringing together their years of collective experience performing, recording, and touring with regionally- and nationally-successful acts Small Brown Bike, LaSalle, BiddyBiddyBiddy, and Ettison Clio. I learned of them a few months back when a mutual friend put us in touch, as they were looking to possibly add some horn as the finishing touch to one song. I recorded some tracks at my home studio and sent them off. Having somewhat forgotten about it, I received the finished track (and eventually the whole album) a few weeks later and was floored. And instantly a fan.[1. This is why I’m comfortable writing an objective review: I was quite divorced from the overall process and didn’t really know the band until the record was almost finished. And they in no way asked me to write this.]

This is a rock album, driven by guitars (Mike Reed), bass (Jared Nisch), drums (Dan Jaquint), and vocals (Tyler Blakslee). The band effectively seasons its sonic palette with just enough keys, “horns, tambourines, and foot-stomps” to nicely round out the sound without detracting from the core quartet. Save one song, the auxiliary instruments – handled mostly in-house – adamantly remain in the background. Instruments aside, the music is aggressive, visceral, and catchy. And gritty. You can’t help but tap (stomp!) your feet and shake a tailfeather when listening. It rocks hard throughout and enjoys a fair bit of chaos, but there’s always a melody or hook nearby to grab onto. “Call Me A Crooked Heart” is a wonderful opening volley, carefully setting the tone for the rest of the album. Stomping, guitars, bass, and voice entreat the listener to let loose as the ensemble gently builds through the second verse until exploding into the dark, droning second chorus and outro. There’s no turning back: “Nation & Ghost” then kicks it up a notch or three with Reed’s guitars mounting an all-out assault over the rhythm section’s tribal dance.

Rob Gordon suggests cooling it down a notch for the third track. “Rented Rooms” offers a brief respite with its sampled clarinet introduction, but otherwise it’s right back to rocking. The instrumentation is noticeably augmented here with the prominent use of tenor saxophone (yours truly), wailing above and scurrying about the quartet. It’s “live” implementation is a nice juxtaposition with the earlier sample. After these first three medium-tempo rockers, “New Turks” kicks you into overdrive with an uptempo, optimistic romp, imploring you to “clap [your] hands in victory.” Make sure you’re near a dance floor to do so. “Heart Heart of The City” offers your adrenaline a slight breather, but the contemplative “Violent Domestic” and caffeinated “Soft Spot for the Reckless” get you back to rocking hard.

The final three songs are a climb back towards the light. “Knives,” musically, is perhaps the darkest song on the record. Scratchy timbres and wailing guitars abound. This soundscape abruptly gives way to the anthemic “Get Into the Light,” an arena-rock song if I’ve ever heard one – an epic number with all the fixins: catchy guitar riffs, pounding bass and drums, background vocals, half-time chorus, mellow outro. (You can easily picture the audience singing along with the house lights up.) “Century Blues” closes the album on a joyous note: “This ain’t no concession, this here is a hundred years of light.” Despite the final song’s gradually-building intensity, its optimism and slower tempo offer listeners a first chance to catch their breath – a sigh of satisfaction and accomplishment. After being thrown to the lions, everything’s fine.

To me, the music’s grit is its key ingredient to why it’s so infectious. While minor chords and edgy timbres run rampant like the rats and jackals Blakslee describes, neither the music nor the message are ultimately glum. Supported by an undertow of optimism, the album is a sonic representation of the band’s rustbelt hometown – industrial and downtrodden, but with the resolve to come back swinging harder and stronger than before. Arguably the most effective example of this aesthetic is “Soft Spot for the Reckless.” (And of course it occurs at the Golden Section…) Its dark verses describe “a soft spot for the reckless, a ballad for the damned.” Yet the major-mode choruses and outro speak to resilience: “They don’t move to any piper’s tune…And down on No Luck Avenue, they will play the ‘Crooked Mercy Blues’ but they won’t move.”

But you’ll move to Times Are Alright. Guaranteed.

Purchase via:
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New Listen: Mitchell & Harris’s ‘Traveling By Moonlight’

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Artist: Mitchell & Harris
Album: Traveling By Moonlight (2011)

This particular New Listen is a real treat for me as it’s personal. G. Pat Harris – a dear friend and first musical soulmate with whom I heavily collaborated in 2003-6 – is half of this wonderful duo along with Anna Mae Mitchell. Pat and Anna’s collaboration began in bluegrass while we were all classmates at Central Michigan University. Since then, they’ve developed a continually expanding original repertoire and are both now based in Austin, TX.

While the obvious core is Mitchell (vocals, acoustic guitar) and Harris (basses, vocals, harmonica, songwriting), don’t be fooled – Traveling By Moonlight (artwork by Ashleigh Wisser) is a full-on sonic experience. The band includes a full rhythm section – drums, acoustic and electric guitars, bass (of course) – and also features piano, mandolin, violin, and percussion. I hesitate to simply label it “Americana” for fear of pigeonholing. Though that’s definitely the starting point, rock, folk, pop, country, jazz, and various other elements also blend together to create what matters most: a solid album of great original songs.

Though I doubt it was their primary aim, Mitchell & Harris carefully observe Rob Gordon’s song order advice with their first three numbers. 🙂 Opening with the bluegrass-tinged “Run From The Ocean,” Anna’s voice and Pat’s lyrics calmly welcome the listener bit by bit, gradually adding each instrument/voice until you finally get the song’s full ensemble halfway through. “New Day” certainly takes it up a notch, offering an upbeat, electric, 90s-pop-rock feel that gets you out of your seat. Then, almost as splitting the difference, the ballad “Home” combines acoustic and electric elements while Anna’s voice gradually grows in intensity, nicely contrasting the restrained solo electric guitar.

Such diversity is a hallmark of this album. For example, the album’s “rockers” all do so differently: “New Day” is optimistic and electric; “The Canyon” reminds one of country rock from decades past; “Lost At Sea” is electric, unapologetic arena rock (and in mixed meter, no less); and “The Overgrown Graveyard” is an example of a hybridized pop-bluegrass that’s often attempted on the airwaves but rarely works (in this case, it does!). Beyond stylistic decisions, the orchestration offers much variety and keeps the listener engaged throughout. Pat, who also served as producer, does a great job of economically showcasing a relatively standard instrumentation, using instruments only when needed and cutting out the sonic fat. Case in point: the violin’s debut in “The Canyon” (track 5) is a welcome timbral change almost halfway through the album, nicely complementing the harmonica and electric guitar. It then doesn’t appear until its cameo four songs later in “Glue,” drunkenly mimicking Anna’s cries, remaining for “Before the Rain” and “The Overgrown Graveyard.” And yet, those songs with violin (or any other auxiliary instrument) don’t stick out as “those fiddle tunes” – all twelve songs are complementary pieces to the same aural pie.

The album’s conclusion is a delightful closing paragraph, summarizing what Traveling By Moonlight is all about. The penultimate “The Overgrown Graveyard” is a bluegrass romp including most of the instruments and sonic elements heard up to that point. And “Waiting For Tomorrow” is an appropriate farewell, distilling the ensemble down to its core – the duo.

It’s been a slightly longer New Listen than normal, but I’m proud of my friends and colleagues for offering up such a quality original contribution. This is a truly independent release, self-funded with everything but the actual packaging process taken care of in-house, making this a great opportunity for everyone to support independent, original music. It’s available today through CD Baby, iTunes, and local Austin retailers, and I highly encourage you to pick yourself up a copy. Mitchell & Harris of course perform in Austin and surrounding areas regularly, but they’ll also be performing in the Midwest in December (and will be joined by yours truly for a couple shows) and in the Northeast and Appalachia in the spring. Consult their website for more information, and check them out if they’re in your area.

And finally, to reference one of this blog’s running themes: pay for what you like. 🙂

Album Links:
CD Baby (CD & MP3)
ATX Podcast (Interview with Pat & Anna, along with some musical previews.)

New Listen: Stan Getz’s ‘Serenity’

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Artist: Stan Getz
Album: Serenity (1991)

This album is the lesser-known counterpart to Getz’s Anniversary, an album I purchased about a year ago and have been unable to put down since.  They are both a product of the same live date: July 6, 1987 at the Club Montmartre in Copenhagen, Denmark. That night, Getz celebrated his 60th birthday in style, accompanied by a powerhouse rhythm section and a warm audience. Anniversary quickly became (and remains) one of my favorite straight-ahead jazz albums, and Serenity is now following suit.

Originally intended to be released together, production issues caused a delay of this “second half,” making it the lesser-known “B-side” of sorts. Like its counterpart, Serenity is a straight-ahead romp for the ages. (Those looking to get their Bossa Nova fix should look elsewhere.) Also, like Anniversary, it features mostly standards – “On Green Dolphin Street,” “I Remember You,” and “I Love You” – as well as Kenny Barron’s “Voyage” and Victor Feldman’s “Falling In Love.” The lineup is:
Stan Getz – Saxophone
Kenny Barron – Piano
Victor Lewis – Drums
Rufus Reid – Bass

I can’t say enough good about this album. Overall, it’s filled with medium- and uptempo tunes, with each one being a bit quicker than the previous, culminating with a swiftly floating “I Love You.” The standards are especially given “straight-ahead” treatment with everything falling pretty much “inside.” That’s not to say it’s at all boring, however – quite the opposite, actually, as the group has much fun with the standards. The band displays its “edgiest” playing on Barron’s “Voyage,” with Getz’s tone at times becoming brassy. (Perhaps because it’s an original?) And, conversely, the band’s gentlest playing is on the other non-standard: “Falling In Love,” the album’s only ballad. Throughout, all four musicians receive ample solo space. “I Remember You” and “Voyage” are the standout tracks here, with the band burning individually and collectively on each. The latter’s unison melody between saxophone and piano is a nice contrast to the rest of the album’s sax-centric melodies.

As some of you may know, it can often be difficult to find good (relatively) contemporary recordings of standards that aren’t too overly-manipulated or arranged. There’s such pressure for everyone to make everything his/her own these days that often there’s a paucity of players just blowing changes (on record, at least). Not that I want that all the time, but every now and again is nice. And when it’s done well, as is the case with Serenity, it is so good. No frills here, just four seasoned veterans improvising and feeding off of one another  and the audience. A must have for any serious jazz fan, in my opinion.

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