Ergo (Brett Sroka / Sam Harris / Shawn Baltazor) + Mary Halvorson / Sebastian Kruger

If Not Inertia

Label: Cuneiform Country: USA

"Ergo is a unique electro-acoustic jazz ensemble, who mine areas in sound that no one else in jazz approaches. While all the players have a strong background in conventional jazz, they are also all young players who have grown up listening to a wide variety of music and they have also grown up with contemporary technology. If Not Inertia is their third album and they continue to use the same basic sonic palette that has characterized their work from the beginning: Brett Sroka performs on trombone and computer, Sam Harris plays piano, prepared piano and Fender Rhodes piano and Shawn Baltazor is the drummer.

If Not Inertia is a release of quietly building and subtly stunning music; music based on loops, improvisation, small composed motifs and the interplay of the musicians. For the first time, on this release, they have worked with two guest musicians, both of them guitarists. Acclaimed new-music/new-jazz guitarist Mary Halvorson appears on nearly half of the album and acoustic guitarist Sebastian Kruger appears on the final track. The guitarists add a new texture to Ergo's sound; a sound unique in jazz today!

In addition to the music, also included on the CD is a .mov file of a five minute, high quality promotional 'making of' film entitled The Making of If Not Inertia, which has some interview insights from the musicians, as well as some insight from the studio sessions on how this album was created."-Cuneiform