ANDRE CANNIERE - Ghost Days
Whirlwind WR4753
Andre Canniere - trumpet, flugelhorn; Tori Freestone - tenor sax; Brigitte Beraha - vocals; Rick Simpson - keys; Tom Farmer - bass; Andrew Bain - drums
Pennsylvania native, UK-based Canniere has assembled an impressive cast of top-flight UK players to realise his follow-up to his acclaimed The Darkening Blue release from 2016. It’s a development of his adventures into this territory between jazz, folk and fusion, and opening track ‘Suicides’ (actually about ladybirds) sets out the stall to good effect. There’s an insistent, funky ostinato groove from rhodes, acoustic bass and Andrew Bains’ tight but light drums over which Beraha’s clear, uninflected vocals float, then combine with the horns to sketch out coolly minimalist horn charts: then the track builds into more jazz-fusion territory, from an explosive drum break into some increasingly intense trades between the leader’s trumpet and Freestone’s sax. Both horns lay out their customary hip cpntemporary jazz language, but Freestone especially seems to be relishing the jazz-rock setting and her sax is full-toned and rhythmical. ‘Colours’ is particularly powerful as a piece of post-rock shot through with impassioned soloing from the horns over a tight punchy rhythm track, while ‘Erasure’ has the kind of sombrely uplifting melodic structures that recall Radiohead or Bon Iver as much as Miles Davis, and ‘My Star’ has the hushed, relaxed simplicity of a Norah Jones tune until it opens out into a pair of truly stunning solos from Canniere and Klammer supremo Rick Simpson.
Throughout Canniere and co manage to keep the balance of rock’s directness and linear melodic development with a healthy quotient of genuine high-level jazz music content - Canniere says he still sees the music as jazz, as informed by his love of Miles and Freddie Hubbard as by the influences he’s absorbed from alt-rock, and followers of both genres will find his engagement to be authentic and engaging. The whole adds up to a fascinatingly individual package that is accessible and challenging at the same time - approach with an open mind for uniquely satisfying results.
Reviewed by Eddie Myer
Whirlwind WR4753
Andre Canniere - trumpet, flugelhorn; Tori Freestone - tenor sax; Brigitte Beraha - vocals; Rick Simpson - keys; Tom Farmer - bass; Andrew Bain - drums
Pennsylvania native, UK-based Canniere has assembled an impressive cast of top-flight UK players to realise his follow-up to his acclaimed The Darkening Blue release from 2016. It’s a development of his adventures into this territory between jazz, folk and fusion, and opening track ‘Suicides’ (actually about ladybirds) sets out the stall to good effect. There’s an insistent, funky ostinato groove from rhodes, acoustic bass and Andrew Bains’ tight but light drums over which Beraha’s clear, uninflected vocals float, then combine with the horns to sketch out coolly minimalist horn charts: then the track builds into more jazz-fusion territory, from an explosive drum break into some increasingly intense trades between the leader’s trumpet and Freestone’s sax. Both horns lay out their customary hip cpntemporary jazz language, but Freestone especially seems to be relishing the jazz-rock setting and her sax is full-toned and rhythmical. ‘Colours’ is particularly powerful as a piece of post-rock shot through with impassioned soloing from the horns over a tight punchy rhythm track, while ‘Erasure’ has the kind of sombrely uplifting melodic structures that recall Radiohead or Bon Iver as much as Miles Davis, and ‘My Star’ has the hushed, relaxed simplicity of a Norah Jones tune until it opens out into a pair of truly stunning solos from Canniere and Klammer supremo Rick Simpson.
Throughout Canniere and co manage to keep the balance of rock’s directness and linear melodic development with a healthy quotient of genuine high-level jazz music content - Canniere says he still sees the music as jazz, as informed by his love of Miles and Freddie Hubbard as by the influences he’s absorbed from alt-rock, and followers of both genres will find his engagement to be authentic and engaging. The whole adds up to a fascinatingly individual package that is accessible and challenging at the same time - approach with an open mind for uniquely satisfying results.
Reviewed by Eddie Myer
