Recorded over 2 days in a Chicago studio in configurations from duos to an octet, drummer Quin Kirchner provides the compositions on this double CD for 11 pieces, alongside works by Frank Foster, Phil Cohran, Sun Ra & Carla Bley, presented as a story or a journey of differing styles and forms, made cohesive by Kirchner's remarkable drumming and coherently diverse interests.
Format: 2 CDs Condition: New Released: 2020 Country: USA Packaging: Cardboard Gatefold Recorded at Decade Studios in Chicago, Illinois, on September 16th and 17th, 2019, and at Shape Shoppe and Future House in Chicago, Illinois, in November, 2019, to March, 2020, by Brian Sulpizio, Nick Broste and Quin Kirchner.
"My favorite albums have always been the ones that take the listener on a journey. I aim to do that, to create worlds with my albums - universes. I wanted The Other Side of Time to unfold like a story and I've continued that process with The Shadows and The Light.
I'm influenced by so many different styles of creative music and I like to try and bring all those influences into harmony on these records. There is long-form and short-form composition. You have groove and you have free improvisation, sometimes at the same time. I chose to honor some of the greats - Elvin Jones with Frank Foster, Phil Cohran, Carla Bley and Sun Ra - by covering their material, while my original compositions pay homage to the influences of Charles Mingus (Lucid Dream) and Mr. Blount (Jupiter Moon). I also make room for sound explorations (Shadow Intro and Ecliptics).
The title cut is an epic journey all on it's own and a composition I've been working and reworking for many years. I'm happy to have finally brought it to life in it's truest form."-Quin Kirchner
"Chicago drummer Quin Kirchner shows off his multifaceted percussive style on The Shadows and the Light, a double album comprising original material and a gratifying selection of covers that pay tribute to his musical influences. Emphasizing rhythm, free improvisation and structure, the 15 tracks on the album are explored in different formats - from solo to septet - in the company of musicians that demonstrate heaps of potential in their playing.
"Shadow Intro" is a welcoming and animated percussive introduction to a beautiful journey. Kirchner crafts this one alone, aggregating Afro-samba pulsations and synth effects. These rhythmic flavors veer to Afro-Cuban on "Batá Chop", where the bandleader, at the center of the rhythm, plays aesthetic attention to the surroundings created by bassist Matt Ulery, keyboardist Rob Clearfield (on Wurlitzer), and alto saxophonist Greg Ward. The latter, plays mostly by the 'rules', but intensifies the dance with outside expeditions that don't last for long.
The bandleader is attracted to both fervently earnest and sensually exotic rhythms. In the former category we have "Rift", a swinging avant-garde trio effort that pushes the tenor saxophonist Nate Lepine to the foreground, and Carla Bley's "King Korn", from which the trombone of Nick Broste erupts, evoking the spirit of Grachan Moncur III, as well as the perfervid bass clarinet of Jason Stein. Conversely, the sight of foreign landscapes is conjured on titles such as "Sahara", a composition by Sun Ra Arkestra's former member Phil Cohran, here featuring flute, bass clarinet and kalimba; "Planet Earth", a mid-50's mainstream-meets-progressive piece by the venerated keyboardist Sun Ra; and "Jupiter Moon", a Kirchner original that, after starting off as a multi-timbral saxophone constellation, embraces a keen 5/4 groove laid down in support of unisons, garnishing melodies, and concurrent improvisations.
The drummer is in charge of the transition that bridges "Star Clutter" - where five unaccompanied horns participate in a buzzing, ongoing activity - and "Moon Vision", where the rhythm section digs into a hip-hop-ish groove.
Definitely a highlight, "At This Point in Time" salutes the late saxophonist Frank Foster, who penned it, and the great drummer Elvin Jones, who included it in his 1976 Blue Note album Prime Element. It's a remarkable orchestration formulated with an Eastern-tinged introductory section, odd-metered groove, gospelized soul-jazz vibrations and a dash of funk. The shining soloists here are Nick Mazzarella on soprano, Lepine on tenor, and Kirchner, whose expressive idiom precedes the contribution of all horns in ecstasy. Everything ends with an inexorable ostinato.
The album is completed after "Lucid Dream", a beautifully harmonized ballad performed in septet and dedicated to the giant bassist Charles Mingus.
This is an exciting album of rhythmic proficiency and stylistic variety. En route, you'll find countless pleasurable moments to savor with no redundancy."-Filipe Freitas, Jazz Trail