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| 4.620 Ft
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| 1. | As If an Angel Fell from the Sky
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| 2. | The Earthquake Tree
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| 3. | Dragon Kites
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| 4. | The Star Splitter
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| 5. | The Hill
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| 6. | Le Baiser (The Kiss)
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| 7. | The Lightning Field
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| 8. | Cinnamon Tree
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| 9. | The Dream Rocker
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| 10. | Beauty Wolf
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| 11. | Microraptagonafly
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| 12. | Aphrodite Rising
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| 13. | The Field
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| 14. | Nora Grace
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Jazz
Rob Mazurek - Piano, Synthesizer, Cornet
Rob Mazurek Quintet
Alexandre Pierrepont Liner Notes
Eric Butkus Mastering
Francois Perica Photography
Jason Adasiewicz Vibraphone
John Herndon Drums, Percussion
Josh Abrams Bass (Acoustic), Piano
Mark Mazurek Sequencing, Engineer
Matthew Lux Guitar (Bass)
Raymond Salvatore Harmon Producer
Robert G. Koester Producer
Todd A. Carter Engineer
Jazz cornetist Rob Mazurek consistently pushes beyond the expectations of his listeners, drawing together ideas out of sound, personalities out of space, and fusing color and light into the tones of his music. The debut record of this new quintet, featuring John Herndon on drums (Tortoise, the For Carnation), Matthew Lux on bass guitar (Isotope 217, Iron and Wine) Josh Abrams on acoustic bass (Town and Country, Black Earth Ensemble) and Jason Adasiewicz on vibes (Loose Assembly, Rolldown) pulls together an astounding array of personalities into a seamless and effervescent whole.
Rob Mazurek is far removed from any standardized progressive or contemporary jazz, preferring to play his cornet and electronics in modern creative modes beholden to nothing specific. His big band, Brazilian based, or small combo recordings all sport a singularity that assures constant surprises along the path. This quintet of young and experienced fellow Chicago underground pioneers is yet another unique project in Mazurek's growing and original discography. Though the band prefers no static time signatures, an odd meter, funky, or rock beat creeps in occasionally amidst the space-derived or techno backdrop he always includes. Vibraphonist Jason Adasiewicz is a shimmering light in darkness, Josh Abrams and Matthew Lux shade mixed colors with deft bass tones, acoustic and electric respectively. This allows Mazurek to explore the full aural spectrum on his orotund toned cornet, occasional synthesizer or piano. All of these diverse elements can be heard right off the bat for "As If an Angel Fell from the Sky," as whirring, minimalist sonics and the spare vibe work of Adasiewicz builds somewhat out of an established vacancy. Mazurek himself is at his height of interaction with the ensemble during the modal 6/8 jam "The Earthquake Tree," a rolling wheel of hip cornet discourse with Adasiewicz laying low in the background. Also in the spontaneous composition mode and a similar beat, "The Hill" is a heavy water experiment based in rounded edged phrases that linger in Mazurek's head. His fascination with Brazilian music crops up during the funky and basic tune "Cinnamon Tree," a melodic work very reminiscent of the dancing sounds of Don Cherry. "The Lightning Field" interjects free bop, "Dream Rocker" is exactly as the title suggests, and the contemporary "The Field" is led by the vibraphonist, the bassists and drummer with Mazurek as an observer. As sonically arresting as the electronic based pieces like the macabre "Le Baiser/The Kiss" and the fractured, circular to minimalist space theme "Beauty Wolf" are, they still are not the centerpieces or the command performances. "Dragon Kites" is a floating composition trumped by a purposely stuck skip phrase, while furious cacophony from the entire quintet is captured on "Aphrodite Rising," and "The Star Splitter" lays Christmas bells on top of South Side Chicago blues. The remarkable diversity displayed and stunning modernism heard on Sound Is should indicate that Rob Mazurek's musical footprint is difficult to pigeonhole, but is clearly an individual stance unique unto itself. If you are open minded, this CD is hard to resist. ~ Michael G. Nastos, All Music Guide
Rob Mazurek
Active Decades: '90s and '00s
Genre: Jazz
Styles: Electronic, Avant-Garde, Neo-Bop, Post-Bop, Hard Bop, Post-Rock/Experimental, Avant-Garde Jazz
Originally rooted in the tradition of hard bop jazz, cornetist Rob Mazurek developed into one of the most consistently exciting pure improvisers of his time. As a founding member of the multifaceted Chicago Underground collective and the 21st century fusion outfit Isotope 217, his playing has redefined musical boundaries through vibrant sonic palettes that defy categorization.
Born in 1965 in Jersey City, NJ, Mazurek moved with his family to the Chicago area as a preteen, and began playing cornet in his school band at the age of ten. After switching briefly to trumpet, he eventually settled on the smaller horn. Upon graduating from high school, the young musician attended the Bloom School of Jazz in Chicago. He got his start as a performer in the city, playing with pianist Kenny Prince and drummer Yoron Israel. Early influences came from the hard bop nucleus of Blue Note Records (particularly the trumpet playing of Lee Morgan, Kenny Dorham, and Freddie Hubbard). It was in this mold that Mazurek shaped his first group, a quartet with drummer George Fludas, bassist John Webber, and pianist Randolph Tressler. In 1993, Mazurek booked an engagement at Edinburgh's Tron Tavern & Ceilidh House for the entire length of the country's Fringe Festival. Though the music was fairly traditional, the performances were a success and the following year the group was offered a deal with Scotland's Hep label. The quartet's promise was certified with Man Facing East in 1994 and Badlands in 1995.
Mazurek was hearing a new sound, however. His creative impulses were being sparked by the music of Ornette Coleman and his cornet-wielding sparring partner from the late '50s, Don Cherry, as well as the Art Ensemble of Chicago. The list would quickly grow to include the free playing of Henry Threadgill, Bill Dixon, and Leo Smith, and by the time of 1996's Green & Blue, Mazurek was beginning to see the limits of his quartet. That year he established the Chicago Underground, a Sunday afternoon workshop at a local bar, the Green Mill. The first person he invited to his new musical high-wire act was guitarist Jeff Parker. The jam sessions quickly attracted a group of regulars including bassist Noel Kupersmith and drummer Chad Taylor, and Mazurek found that he had the core for an ensemble. It was this new crew (completed by trombonist Sara Smith), billed as the Chicago Underground Orchestra, that recorded Playground for Bob Koester's Delmark in 1998. The partnership automatically linked Mazurek's group with a rich tradition of Chicago jazz, as Delmark had championed a number of artists from the city's Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians.
Mazurek's Orchestra would spawn a number of spinoffs including a Duo (with Taylor), Trio (with Kupersmith), and a Quartet (with Parker), all of which wore the Chicago Underground banner. Parker had moved into the loft of Chicago out-rockers Tortoise a few years earlier and quickly became a full-time member. Two musical worlds -- fringe jazz and fringe rock -- met and Mazurek found himself exposed to an entirely new realm of sonic possibilities. In the years that followed, he made numerous extracurricular appearances, lending his cornet to Tortoise's TNT, Gastr del Sol's Camoufleur, Stereolab's Cobra and Phases Group, and Sam Prekop's solo debut, among others. It was out of this musical cross-fertilization that, in 1997, Isotope 217 was born. A disorienting mix of jazz flourishes, muscular funk, hip-hop reductions, and minimalist electronica, the group was a collaboration between Orchestra members (Mazurek, Parker, and Smith), veteran Chicago bassist Matt Lux, and Tortoise's Dan Bitney and John Herndon. The sextet released its debut, The Unstable Molecule, in 1998, followed by Utonian Automatic (1999) and Who Stole the I Walkman? (2000).
Meanwhile, the music emanating from the Chicago Underground was approaching the realm of pure sound on albums like Synesthesia and Possible Cube. Mazurek had discovered the music of Morton Feldman and Vladimir Ussachevsky as well as visual artists like Mark Rothko, all of which seemed to find a way into the music. As the century drew to a close, he was hard at work developing laptop-constructed musique concrète for his Orton Socket project. Mazurek subsequently moved from the United States to São Paulo, Brazil, and has continued to maintain an internationalist perspective, touring and recording with such ensembles as the São Paulo Underground, the Exploding Star Orchestra, and the improvisational trio Tigersmilk, and presenting new works at the Dieppe Biennale in Normandy, France, in 2007.
---Nathan Bush, All Music Guide |
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