SEE THROUGH 4 - False Ghosts, Minor Fears
All-Set!: AS012
Marilyn Lerner: piano; Karen Ng: saxophone; Pete Johnston: bass; Nick Fraser: drums
Recorded November 2019 by Fedge at Union Sound Company
As a primer for the vivacity of the contemporary Toronto jazz scene, you can’t do worse than this set. It features four of the city’s finest players, combining to create a stomping post-bop masterclass. Johnston has created a fascinating set of tunes that combine melody with switch-back shifts in rhythm and stop-start phrasing. You can get an inkling of his approach to music making from tune titles such as ‘Another word for science’, ‘Uncertain slant of light’ or ‘Not a half stepper’. What is striking in the tunes is the way in which, despite the different time signatures, each tune swings. Even more compelling than the compositions is the way in which the quartet is so completely at ease with the discipline of ensemble playing these create. In particular, the sinuous melodies have piano and sax so totally in phase that there are eerie moments when they seem to merge into a new instrument (on the first couple of listens, for instance, I could have sworn there was an electric guitar in the mix). Both Lerner and Ng are completely at home playing a variety of styles, from classical to traditional jazz to free jazz, and Johnston’s compositions call upon them to switch between all of these styles. Equally, the rhythm section is equally flexible in the ways that the bass and drums switch styles, tempo and rhythms. So, the music veers from the subtly of chamber music to the complexity of post-bop to the wildness of free jazz – typically from bar to bar in the same tune. This certainly keeps the band of its toes and also keeps the listeners on the edge of their seats. Having said that, none of the pieces are overtly challenging, in the sense that some contemporary music can be, but rather the complete immersion in the jazz idiom of the quartet renders each piece clear, logical and really easy to follow and enjoy.
Reviewed by Chris Baber
All-Set!: AS012
Marilyn Lerner: piano; Karen Ng: saxophone; Pete Johnston: bass; Nick Fraser: drums
Recorded November 2019 by Fedge at Union Sound Company
As a primer for the vivacity of the contemporary Toronto jazz scene, you can’t do worse than this set. It features four of the city’s finest players, combining to create a stomping post-bop masterclass. Johnston has created a fascinating set of tunes that combine melody with switch-back shifts in rhythm and stop-start phrasing. You can get an inkling of his approach to music making from tune titles such as ‘Another word for science’, ‘Uncertain slant of light’ or ‘Not a half stepper’. What is striking in the tunes is the way in which, despite the different time signatures, each tune swings. Even more compelling than the compositions is the way in which the quartet is so completely at ease with the discipline of ensemble playing these create. In particular, the sinuous melodies have piano and sax so totally in phase that there are eerie moments when they seem to merge into a new instrument (on the first couple of listens, for instance, I could have sworn there was an electric guitar in the mix). Both Lerner and Ng are completely at home playing a variety of styles, from classical to traditional jazz to free jazz, and Johnston’s compositions call upon them to switch between all of these styles. Equally, the rhythm section is equally flexible in the ways that the bass and drums switch styles, tempo and rhythms. So, the music veers from the subtly of chamber music to the complexity of post-bop to the wildness of free jazz – typically from bar to bar in the same tune. This certainly keeps the band of its toes and also keeps the listeners on the edge of their seats. Having said that, none of the pieces are overtly challenging, in the sense that some contemporary music can be, but rather the complete immersion in the jazz idiom of the quartet renders each piece clear, logical and really easy to follow and enjoy.
Reviewed by Chris Baber
