The genius behind British electronica duo Spring Heel Jack's
collaborations with free improv players (a disc with John Surman on
Thirsty Ear followed by two star-studded records on Thirsty Ear's Blue
Series) is that they let the acoustic instruments anchor the sets. The
whooshes and beats are present but don't dominate. Likewise, Blue
Series director Matthew Shipp's work with beatician FLAM, although less
successful, still results in jazz records.
The GoodandEvil Sessions, the next in the label's
electroacoustic jazz experiments, pits a pair of editor/manipulators -
Miso and GoodandEvil himself - against another posse of downtown
players, this time Roy Campbell, Alex Lodico, Josh Roseman, William
Parker and Shipp (heard here on Korg synthesizer exclusively), to less
exciting results.
The difference, arguably the problem, is that the jazzmen are merely
used, confined to small spaces and not allowed to run free. The beats
and grooves guide the disc, leaving acoustic sections as mere filigree,
much like the way acid jazz djs would drop Blue Note or Impulse licks as
artifacts, eclipsing the freedom and soulfulness of the source material.
So GoodandEvil is not a jazz record. It's not a bad record,
either, and nobody said you have to play jazz when you play with jazz
players. It's an enjoyable record. It's got a good beat and you can dance
to it. Well, sort of, anyway. The beats are on the slow side and the
tracks don't especially come off as cutting edge, or even all that current.
Spy music, soul and lounge themes recur, all so '90s but still
well done. Nice solos from Campbell and Parker escape in spots, and for
those who don't decry Shipp's synth work (this reporter included), his
playing works well as a no-fire zone between the two camps.
Unfortunately, the only new sounds come in the closing minutes of
"Sweetbitter," the album's closing track. The rest just makes for a
pleasant compromise during after-dinner drinks.
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