[rating=9.00]
Self-produced at Brooklyn Recording, the sound quality of The Bad Plus Joshua Redman is as stark and uncluttered as the album’s cover art. Yet, it serves a distinct purpose: to reveal the detail in the playing of four musicians who’d played a scant few shows together before entering the studio together and nurturing their uncanny chemistry. And, as sparse as the arrangements are here, it’s barely impossible not to luxuriate within the musicianship that brings them to life, a sensation the players themselves no doubt experienced as well.
As much self-discipline and intelligence as there is on this record–all nine racks are permeated with those virtues—there’s also a palpable physical force emanating from this music. These four men are taking tremendous pleasure in the mutual discovery of their musical kinship. On any given track, as on “As This Moment Slips Away,” for instance, it’s as fascinating to follow the rhythm section of bassist Reid Anderson and drummer Dave King; here the duo maintain something a marching gait, while pianist Ethan Iverson hits notes from a curious angle and, while all this is going on, Redman circles in and out up and around, his saxophone tone just sweet enough to camouflage its piercing edge.
As technically skilled as are The Bad Plus and Joshua Redman, their four way interactions are anything but antiseptic during a track such as “Dirty Blonde” (along with “Silence Is The Question,” a staple of the trio’s repertoire reworked for this record). And as wry as is the title “Beauty Has It Hard,” the patience the quartet demonstrates as they build upon the rhythm and melody of King’s tune is striking. The bond here is such the individual egos remain in check so that, by the time “County Seat” rolls around, everyone in the group has had a chance to introduce their respective expertise, in so doing, illustrating how they’ve carefully proffered particular elements of their personalities to mesh with the others.
The Bad Plus and Joshua Redman are steeped in the jazz tradition, yet they share an inclination to seek adventure and inspiration the enlivening likes of which arises from this project even more than some of those in the past where they’ve taken more than nominal chances (Redman’s groove-based Elastic Band, the Bad Plus with live multimedia presentations of “The Rite of Spring”). Now that their collaboration has happened, it seems in retrospect it was inevitable, but that doesn’t make it any less satisfying to hear.
