DAVE MANNINGTON'S RIFF RAFF - Challenger Deep
Loop1030
Brigitte Beraha - vocals; Ivo Neame - rhodes, mellotron, hammond; Tomas Challenger - tenor sax; Rob Updegraff - guitar; Dave Manington - bass; Tim Giles - drums
Manington is a founder member of the Loop Collective, along with such luminaries as Ivo Neame, Tom Challenger and Jim Hart, and shares their vision of a progressive, free-ranging take on jazz that draws inspiration from the European tradition as much as from the American masters. Riff Raff has been an ongoing project, developed organically over the last decade - in fact, Manington’s association with Giles and Updegraff stretches back to their schooldays - but this is only their second release, following up 2013’s ‘Hullabaloo’.
The band are all superbly accomplished musicians, and there’s plenty of room to stretch out on the multi-section ‘Iliad’, with a wonderful light-as-air solo from Updegraff and a frenetic rhodes-and-drum duet from Neame and Giles, while Challenger rises to the challenge on the arrestingly quirky ‘Dangerpig’, soaring above the soup of electronic effects, and is at once affectingly lyrical and highly individual on the ballad ‘Willow Tree’. Manington is a powerful, accurate player, as evidenced by the extended unison passages with Challenger on ‘Challenger Deep’ and the tumbling odd-number rhythms of ‘Prime Numbers’, and ‘Free Spirit’ showcases his warm, woody tone. However, the real star turn is in the carefully plotted compositions, and the way this highly empathetic band bring them to life, devoting as much attention to group texture and timbre as they do to their individual contributions. Beraha’s voice is a crucial element here, adding an airy lightness to the fusiony, Weather Report style group improvisation of ‘Dr Octopus’, while her sincere and unaffected delivery and lyrics make ‘Free Spirit’ and “Willow Tree’ work as simple, direct songs and tie them in to the more extrovert, overtly jazzy material to give the album a sense of unity that might otherwise be rather lost in the eclectic range of the writing. Fans of early Return to Forever will find much to enjoy here as well.
The end result is a record that feels accessible, with a clear sense of fun and adventure, yet still manages to demonstrate an impressive set of individual and collective chops. An extensive tour follows, and you should try and go if you can.
Reviewed by Eddie Myer
Loop1030
Brigitte Beraha - vocals; Ivo Neame - rhodes, mellotron, hammond; Tomas Challenger - tenor sax; Rob Updegraff - guitar; Dave Manington - bass; Tim Giles - drums
Manington is a founder member of the Loop Collective, along with such luminaries as Ivo Neame, Tom Challenger and Jim Hart, and shares their vision of a progressive, free-ranging take on jazz that draws inspiration from the European tradition as much as from the American masters. Riff Raff has been an ongoing project, developed organically over the last decade - in fact, Manington’s association with Giles and Updegraff stretches back to their schooldays - but this is only their second release, following up 2013’s ‘Hullabaloo’.
The band are all superbly accomplished musicians, and there’s plenty of room to stretch out on the multi-section ‘Iliad’, with a wonderful light-as-air solo from Updegraff and a frenetic rhodes-and-drum duet from Neame and Giles, while Challenger rises to the challenge on the arrestingly quirky ‘Dangerpig’, soaring above the soup of electronic effects, and is at once affectingly lyrical and highly individual on the ballad ‘Willow Tree’. Manington is a powerful, accurate player, as evidenced by the extended unison passages with Challenger on ‘Challenger Deep’ and the tumbling odd-number rhythms of ‘Prime Numbers’, and ‘Free Spirit’ showcases his warm, woody tone. However, the real star turn is in the carefully plotted compositions, and the way this highly empathetic band bring them to life, devoting as much attention to group texture and timbre as they do to their individual contributions. Beraha’s voice is a crucial element here, adding an airy lightness to the fusiony, Weather Report style group improvisation of ‘Dr Octopus’, while her sincere and unaffected delivery and lyrics make ‘Free Spirit’ and “Willow Tree’ work as simple, direct songs and tie them in to the more extrovert, overtly jazzy material to give the album a sense of unity that might otherwise be rather lost in the eclectic range of the writing. Fans of early Return to Forever will find much to enjoy here as well.
The end result is a record that feels accessible, with a clear sense of fun and adventure, yet still manages to demonstrate an impressive set of individual and collective chops. An extensive tour follows, and you should try and go if you can.
Reviewed by Eddie Myer
