# Chris Potter – Plugs In, Miho Hazama – Levels Up, and Larry Grenadier – Goes It Alone: Photos, Videos, Sounds

- Link: https://jazzblues.eu/2019/02/18/chris-potter-plugs-in-miho-hazama-levels-up-and-larry-grenadier-goes-it-alone-photos-videos-sounds/
- Published: 2019-02-18T20:45:50+01:00
- Author: https://JazzBlues.EU

**Chris Potter, “Circuits”**

He has plugged in before, to excellent effect. But Chris Potter is chasing after
a different goal with _Circuits_, his invigorating new album on Edition Records.

Potter’s previous effort in this mode was Underground, which extended the legacy
of gnarly, guitar-heavy jazz-rock, on several albums and hundreds of gigs. _Circuits_
features Potter on saxophones, flutes, clarinets, guitars, sampler and percussion;
James Francies on keyboards; and Eric Harland on drums.

As before, there’s a strong emphasis on groove. But the synth-forward dimensions
of this band suggest an upgrade to the operating system. For a perfect illustration,
look to the title track, which has its premiere here.

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On “Circuits” and a few other tracks, the trio is smartly augmented by electric 
bassist Linley Marthe, an alumnus of Joe Zawinul’s bands. Listen for the corkscrew
syncopation in the melody, and the muscularity of Potter’s tenor saxophone solo,
which fleetingly evokes the late Michael Brecker. But above all, pay attention to
what Francies does — both in his chiming accompaniment and in a solo (on Minimoog?)
that hurtles into the exosphere.

**Miho Hazama and m_unit, “Il Paradiso del Blues”**

Miho Hazama last caught our ear with _The Monk: Live at Bimhuis, _an album of Thelonious
Monk compositions she had arranged for the Metropole Orkest Big Band. Her new release,
_Dancer in Nowhere_, ups the ante considerably. Featuring her precision-honed large
ensemble m_unit, it’s a vibrant showcase for Hazama’s imagination as a composer 
and orchestrator — and confirmation of her stature as one of the important newer
arrivals in the field.

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“Il Paradiso del Blues” opens with a breathless prelude, as alto saxophonist Steve
Wilson sprints through a solo backed only by briskly swinging drums. The band enters
like a machine rolling into gear, with canny shifts in tempo and time feel. Hazama
knows how to create a sensation of inexorable forward pull through layering and 
counterpoint; when Wilson returns for another solo interlude, this time backed by
the band, it feels like a joyous release. Hazama has two fine previous albums with
m_unit, but this should be her breakthrough.

**Larry Grenadier, “Pettiford”**

Because bassist Larry Grenadier has been such a graceful complement and anchor —
in two editions of the Brad Mehldau Trio, in the collective trio Fly, and with many
others — it might seem at first that his unaccompanied solo album, _The Gleaners_,
is a study in subtraction. That misperception is quickly dispelled by the music,
which feels aglow with a deep integrity of purpose.

Grenadier has obviously been thinking about this gesture for quite some time, and
he brings a thoughtful range of approaches to the solo-bass format — a subspecialty
of ECM Records, going back to albums by Barre Phillips and Dave Holland. _The Gleaners
_relies on chamber-esque arco arrangements as well as sculptured pizzicato statements,
always with a smart and self-contained air. “Pettiford,” featured above, is Grenadier’s
tribute to Oscar Pettiford, who helped define the role of the bass in the early 
bebop era; it’s a piece full of locomotive energy despite a rubato cadence.

**Matthew Shipp Trio, “Flying Saucer”**

Pianist and composer Matthew Shipp has always kept a diverse portfolio as a recording
artist: last year alone, he released albums in solo, duo and quartet configurations.
But there’s a special brand of intensity that Shipp achieves with his working trio,
which has Michael Bisio on bass and Newman Taylor Baker on drums. This group last
released a studio album, _Piano Song_, on Thirsty Ear in 2017. It now has a worthy
follow-up in _Signature_, on ESP-Disk.

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The interaction among these three improvisers is alert and unflagging, the precise
embodiment of active listening. On “Flying Saucer,” it begins as a low rumble and
gradually moves into a prickly midrange, with tempo and tonality both subject to
endless debate. Shipp’s exploration at the piano is abstract but grounded, always,
in the moment at hand.

**Nubiyan Twist Featuring Mulatu Astatke, “Addis to London”**

The 12-piece collective Nubiyan Twist formed several years ago at the Leeds College
of Music, and has since taken its place among a groove-minded cohort on the current
UK scene. On a stylish new album, _Jungle Run, _the band sharpens its proprietary
blend of Afrobeat, dub, acid jazz and R&B — with a couple of very special guests,
including the African jazz luminary Mulatu Astatke.

Astatke — the vibraphonist, keyboardist and percussionist widely credited as the
father of Ethio-jazz — is now 75, an elder statesman by any measure. In the context
of Nubiyan Twist, which looks to the hybrid sound of the 1970s as a beacon, his 
presence is nothing less than a talisman. His vibraphone resonates throughout the
track, behind a crisp Afrobeat groove and an annunciatory melody for horns.

![Saxophonist Chris Potter, center, with drummer Eric Harland (left) and keyboardist
James Francies (right)](https://i0.wp.com/www.wbgo.org/sites/wbgo/files/styles/medium/
public/201902/chris_potter__credit-_dave_stapleton_-0139.jpg?w=640&ssl=1)

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