Also in this Issue
- Hill Peaks After a few low-profile decades, pianist Andrew Hill is resurgent--and restless (Music)
- American Idol 'Rolling Thunder Revue' examines the mystique of Bob Dylan (Music)
- The Beatifics: The Way We Never Were (CD Review)
- MC Paul Barman: Paullelujah! (CD Review)
- Fennesz: Field Recordings 1995:2002 (CD Review)
- Various Artists: Total 4, Ellen Allien: Weiss.Mix (CD Review)
- Carei Thomas Feel Free Ensemble: Mining Our Bid'ness (CD Review)
- Missy Elliott: Under Construction (CD Review)
- More articles from this issue...
More CD Review Articles
- Various Artists: Chilly Northern Women (Nov 13, 2002)
- Lateduster: Lateduster, and Five Easy Pieces (Nov 6, 2002)
- Franklin Bruno: A Cat May Look At A Queen , Jenny Toomey: Tempting: Jenny Toomey Sings the Songs (Oct 23, 2002)
- Eyes Adrift: Eyes Adrift (Oct 23, 2002)
- Various Artists: Boom Selection_Issue 01 (Oct 23, 2002)
- Liars: They Threw Us All in a Trench (Oct 23, 2002)
- Amon Tobin: Out from Out Where (Oct 16, 2002)
- Thievery Corporation: The Richest Man in Babylon (Oct 16, 2002)
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Jason Moran: Modernistic
Modernistic
Blue Note
Watching 27-year-old pianist Jason Moran transform his precocious talent into distinctive self-command is one of the more exciting developments to occur in jazz over the past decade. On last year's Black Stars, Moran proved he could thrust and parry in tandem with prickly saxophonist Sam Rivers, an unrepentant renegade from the days when hard bop had squawked its way through to the rigorous harmonies and freer tempos of the avant-garde. Abetted by bassist Tarus Mateen and drummer Nasheet Waits--hands down the best young rhythm section in jazz--Moran even cajoled Rivers into a pair of beautiful, impressionistic tone poems, "Say Peace" and "Summit." Here was an intergenerational summit meeting that was more like an intrepid quest than some feel-good homage or commercial gimmick.
It took chutzpah for Moran to follow the collective triumph of Black Stars with a solo piano CD; in the press materials accompanying the release, he admits that as he adjusted to the absence of his catalytic ensemble, early sessions for the project were lackluster. But the 11 tracks that were eventually selected for Modernistic are a cohesive display of the pianist's stylistic breadth. He gleefully unearths the roots of jazz with rakish stride phrases (set off by thunderous left-handed comping) on James P. Johnson's "You've Got to Be Modernistic"; with ragtime gusto on "Moran Tonk Circa 1936"; and with a gentle, meditative rendition of the standard "Body and Soul." He hurls himself into early hip hop with a deconstructed version of Afrika Bambaataa's landmark '80s single "Planet Rock" and uses a reversed tape loop to smudge up the funk. His cover of Muhal Richard Abrams's "Time into Space into Time" captures the skewed, restless energy and nimble allusions that made Abrams an often-imitated postmodern composer. Moran tweaks his signature style further by deploying extended rests between phrases, in a manner inspired by another postmodern icon, John Cage.
For Euro-classicists, Moran delivers "Auf einer Burg," a sad love song from 19th-century composer Robert Schumann, and his own "Passion," an ethereally romantic ballad reminiscent of Brahms. There are a half-dozen Moran originals in all, including two updates on his ongoing "Gangsterism" series (all of them variations on Andrew Hill's graceful "Erato"); and "Gentle Shifts South," a tribute to his Texas family history, featuring a pensive melody that concludes the disc on a mood of peace and calm.
About Britt Robson
From the Archive
- A Veteran Clamps Down The Wolves find an unexpected bright spot (Sports - Nov 20, 2002)
- Hopeless Despite KG's best efforts, it looks like another year, another one-and-out for the troubled Wolves. If they're lucky. (Cover Story - Nov 6, 2002)
- Herbie's Love Bug Herbie Hancock embraces bebop, hip hop, drum 'n' bass, jazz--and all humanity (Music - Nov 6, 2002)
- Perfect Stranger Joshua Alexander looked at all the lonely women in internet chat rooms-- and saw nothing but opportunit (Cover Story - Oct 23, 2002)
- Off Beat (Off Beat - Oct 2, 2002)
- Off Beat (Off Beat - Sep 18, 2002)
- Trouble Shooters A violent night in north Minneapolis and the community activists who helped the cops stop it (Cover Story - Sep 4, 2002)
- The Gospel According to Carol Johnson Minneapolis's top teacher keeps the faith in trying times (Cover Story - Aug 21, 2002)
- More articles from the Britt Robson Archive...
