So, what we have here is a sextet that wanted to be a bigger band; it’s like the little group that could. Now some people might like their jazz a little more down home and dirty but, when the light is in the right quarter, if you might want something bold, bright and brassy full of optimism and hope enough to ignore the orange cloud on the horizon you could do worse than pull Effra off the shelf. There are many worse ways to pass an hour and I should know as I’ve just spent an hour ironing and listening to Radio 2.
A clarion call crashes
into the first track, Traintracker,
and we’re motoring and it’s all open rails ahead, there’s a lovely bit of
insidious round the corner swing, hot stepping drums and oblique piano with a
deeply rumbling bass.
Second track, Bridge, is for Mullov-Abbado’s wife and
is a seductive bit of low light smooching. Elegant and flowing with Davison’s
burnished flugelhorn to the fore whilst the others swing gently round his lead.
It’s followed by Rose which is packed
with wailing soulful blues that is so good it inspires wide smiles.
Red
Earth comes as an intermission, an opportunity to deflate a
little. It’s elegant and fluid in waltz time, building up over rolling toms and
then tumbling us back down again. The band in full voice then fading away to
delicate piano runs. Canção de Sobriedade
(or No More Booze) is more
energetic than its mournful subtitle might suggest, in fact in all senses of
the word it’s a blast. It’s as wild and celebratory as the best of Latin party
music, (especially if you didn’t know the translation); it makes Santana sound
like the Bridge Club.
Subsonic
Glow
is equally celebratory, harking back to the early days of Bebop when you only
had three minutes to get everything onto the disc. This seems to have the same
thinking but stretched out to 6:23. A brief, bouncing bass solo hints at the
piece’s roots in When Lights Are Low, with
hinting piano adding some punctuation before a closing pile on by the full band
with Dunachie attempting to demolish his keys. Joyous.
Closer, Nanban, is a slow blues in memory of a
now closed Brixton restaurant. Over a simple regular rhythm from piano, bass
and drums that moves from subdued backing to front and dominant the front line
create a moving soundscape. As the rhythm section moves up in the mix the
trumpet and reeds gain in power and, whilst it’s not a battle, there is a challenge.
A sudden cliff edge finish leaves us adrift.
It’s an album of
variations in style but strong composing and high quality soloing from a band
that have been together long enough to develop a close fraternal understanding.
I was lucky enough to see this band (with Dave Ingamells in for Chapman) in
London in October 2024 and said at the time that I’d be first in the queue to
buy the album when it came out. Well, it’s taken a while, the queue was shorter
than for Oasis tickets and less dynamic but it’s definitely money well spent.
Effra
is
available from all the usual outlets including BANDCAMP. Dave Sayer
No comments :
Post a Comment