Seattle trumpeter Cuong Vu has a new album, "Shizaru," with the quartet Naked Truth. The music melds jazz improv, electronica and drum'n'bass. Other new CDs this week include Blake Shelton's "Red River Blue"; "If Not Now, When?" by Incubus; and a new selection of Tony Bennett's classic work for the indie label Improv.
Naked Truth, "Shizaru" (RareNoiseRecords)
The brilliant Seattle trumpeter Cuong Vu bridges the gap between jazz improv and the whooshes, whirs and hiccups of electronica. With the quartet Naked Truth (Lorenzo Feliciati, electric guitar and bass; Roy Powell, piano; Pat Mastelotto, drums), he adds drum'n'bass to the mix.
On "Shizaru," ominous beats prowl the deep like sharks, as Powell's acoustic piano gambols over synthesized clouds with twinkling runs and Vu plays the whole sound spectrum, from atmospheric, pushed-air sequences to clarion, unamplified trumpet melodies. The mood occasionally waxes lyrical, but mostly this engaging album takes you to tranceland, where synesthesia easily translates sound into the imagery of a swirling light show. Nice stuff. - Paul de Barros, Seattle Times jazz critic
0 Comments:
Post a Comment