Good evening jazz lovers and giants! Avishai Cohens After the Big Rain is an ambitious, earthy and endlessly surprising work that finds the trumpeter/composer melding post-bop, avant-garde jazz, African folk music and electric soundscapes. Having been a force on the downtown NYC jazz scene since the 90s, Cohen has made a name for himself as an adventurous, forward-thinking musician performing in various ensembles that mixed everything from klezmer and free jazz to swinging hard bop and post-rock. Here, Cohen takes his world music inclinations one step further partnering with West African vocalist/guitarist Lionel Loueke on a series of loosely connected pieces that strongly feature Louekes moody singing and percussive guitar. Interestingly, the album often sounds more like African folk music than jazz with Loueke setting a song up and then Cohen with his muted/electronically enhanced trumpet and keyboardist Jason Lindners wave-like Fender Rhoades joining in organically after a few bars. Cohen himself is a fire brand of an improviser who evinces both a Miles Davis-like sense of harmonic color and a knack for muscular, knotty Woody Shaw-inspired improvisational lines. Here, he mixes both styles liberally, often bumping against Yosvany Terrys rhythmic jack-in-the-box sounding chereke playing. In many ways, The fermenting tide of Parto Forte is a melting pot from which emerge African rhythm, jazz harmony, free movement, and a dollop of funk. The shift comes in gradually, the chekere and the vocals sashaying in before Cohen shapes it with a structured melody. His jazz instincts serve the tune well and bring it to the forefront. The rhythm bed stirs headily as Cohen continues to recharge the melody with intense phrases that jump and probe. Jason Lindner (keyboards and Fender Rhodes) uncoils light and slowly, his lope to the Rhodes unlocking a percolating swizzle of notes. Cohen then funks in as he filters his trumpet through electronic effects. https://youtube/watch?v=jPHEXmZeH14
Posted on: Fri, 27 Jun 2014 18:20:38 +0000
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