NEW SIMPLICITY TRIO - Common Spaces
BB Records: BBDV16147
Antonio Fusco: drums; Bruno Heinen: piano; Henrik Jensen: bass
Recorded June 16th and 17th 2015 by Alex Kilpatrick at Porcupine Studios, London
I guess an obvious question is how can a piano trio make itself distinct when the current scene feels like it is bursting with new outfits? One way is to do what this trio has done, and take some very talented musicians and the intention of stripping the music right down to its rhythmic and melodic basics. Where other trios might be looking to run their tunes through dance-oriented sounds and apply electronic effects, here is a trio that sticks to jazz measures but still finds a deep and captivating swing. It is touching that for a young trio of musicians, each piece has a dedication to an inspirational figure, say Wayne Shorter (track 9, ‘Daydreamer’) or Richard Turner (track 4, ‘Across the Pond’).
The trio has Fusco and Heinen’s long standing partnership expanded and enhanced by Jensen’s bass playing. There is a rich production that makes the bass sing, whether it is playing solo or working one of the rolling grooves, and that gives the piano the sort of wide open sound the Heinen is making his own. The press release mentions Evans / La Faro / Motion as inspiration and, for once, this is not quite hyperbole but not a bad shout in terms of comparison. Of course, the trio here play their instruments very differently (despite Heinen’s continued interest in the Evans’) and the way that they approach the tunes has a youthful exuberance rather than studied serenity. But, there is something in the way the player trade lead role with an effortless than makes it sound as if the compositions had been thoroughly charted and also spontaneously invented. Nowhere is this more apparent than on Fusco’s arrangement of Mingus’ ‘Goodbye Pork-Pie Hat’ (track 8). An opening bass vamp skirts around the barest suggestion of the tune before piano states the theme of the piece in a clear and bright manner, before the piece shifts into a minor key exploring some deft, off-centred but still lyrical phrasing.
Reviewed by Chris Baber
BB Records: BBDV16147
Antonio Fusco: drums; Bruno Heinen: piano; Henrik Jensen: bass
Recorded June 16th and 17th 2015 by Alex Kilpatrick at Porcupine Studios, London
I guess an obvious question is how can a piano trio make itself distinct when the current scene feels like it is bursting with new outfits? One way is to do what this trio has done, and take some very talented musicians and the intention of stripping the music right down to its rhythmic and melodic basics. Where other trios might be looking to run their tunes through dance-oriented sounds and apply electronic effects, here is a trio that sticks to jazz measures but still finds a deep and captivating swing. It is touching that for a young trio of musicians, each piece has a dedication to an inspirational figure, say Wayne Shorter (track 9, ‘Daydreamer’) or Richard Turner (track 4, ‘Across the Pond’).
The trio has Fusco and Heinen’s long standing partnership expanded and enhanced by Jensen’s bass playing. There is a rich production that makes the bass sing, whether it is playing solo or working one of the rolling grooves, and that gives the piano the sort of wide open sound the Heinen is making his own. The press release mentions Evans / La Faro / Motion as inspiration and, for once, this is not quite hyperbole but not a bad shout in terms of comparison. Of course, the trio here play their instruments very differently (despite Heinen’s continued interest in the Evans’) and the way that they approach the tunes has a youthful exuberance rather than studied serenity. But, there is something in the way the player trade lead role with an effortless than makes it sound as if the compositions had been thoroughly charted and also spontaneously invented. Nowhere is this more apparent than on Fusco’s arrangement of Mingus’ ‘Goodbye Pork-Pie Hat’ (track 8). An opening bass vamp skirts around the barest suggestion of the tune before piano states the theme of the piece in a clear and bright manner, before the piece shifts into a minor key exploring some deft, off-centred but still lyrical phrasing.
Reviewed by Chris Baber
