Vibraphonist Joel Ross Returns To Blue Note On Improvisational Strong ‘Who Are You?’ (ALBUM REVIEW)

Last year the young vibraphonist/composer Joel Ross not only made his Blue Note debut which landed on our Glide 20 Best Jazz of 2019 List along with  similar recognition in such prestigious publications such as The New York Times., NPR, and Rolling Stone.  Ross was arguably the star and “MVP” of the 2019 Newport Jazz Festival. Now Ross continues to extend the storied Blue Note label’s legacy of vibraphonists from Milt Jackson to Bobby Hutcherson to Stefon Harris with his second project, Who Are You?  This time out Ross, now 25, co-produced the album with saxophonist Walter Smith III and rendered his mostly original compositions with his Good Vibes band, mostly intact save the new bassist Kanoa Mendenhall who replaces Benjamin Tiberio. Continuing members are Immanuel Wilkins (alto sax), Jeremy Corren (piano), and Jeremy Dutton (drums).  Harpist Brandee Younger appears on five tracks. Ross points to the new bassist and the process of maturation as the key ingredients in arriving at the sound he wanted to shape. Twelve of the fifteen tracks are composed by a band member with Ross writing or co-writing ten.

That sound is more ensemble oriented than the predecessor as Ross contends the band improvises together rather than stringing together a series of solos. They establish a mood, then follow where it takes them. Not only that, listen carefully to hear the many who have shaped his sound, from the interplay of Miles and Wayne, to the deft touch of Bags, to Harris’s use of harmonics, to rhythms found in the music of Steve Coleman, to the unexpected kind of  creative concepts favored by Ambrose Akinmusire, Marquis Hill (who wrote the liner notes), and Makaya McCraven. Walter Smith III provided input for an album assembled in halves. Tracks one-seven provide setting, as well as character introduction via plenty of improvisation while tracks 8-15 offer plot twists in the manner of more written compositions.

The opener, “Dream,” (a Dutton composition) sets the tone as weaves through the peaks and valleys of dream, allowing a gorgeous melody to slowly build, reaching an apex and then diminishing to its concluding final note. “Calling” is an interlude played alone on the bass by Mendenhall while “Home” offers more melodic phrasing, mostly through the interplay of Ross and Corren. The momentum picks up on “More,” as Ross, Wilkins, and Corren trade statements until the tune ends unpredictably. There is a conscious move toward swing here, especially on the part of Ross and Wilkins (who issued his impressive Blue Note debut, Omega, this past August also covered on these pages.) The cover of Coltrane’s ballad “After the Rain” is stunningly divine, as Wilkins captures the spirituality of the original while Ross and Corren, and Brandee Younger combine to create the shimmering effect of rain as if in a sun shower. 

”Vartha,” composed by Ambrose Akinmusire, is a lengthy improvisational piece, where Wilkins shines in flurry of notes, building to a feverish pitch backed by the strong interplay of Mendenhall and Dutton, who keep pushing him forward while Ross and Corren add a shifting background of colors before Ross and Dutton solo. The latter’s work throughout the piece and in this statement is exceptional and leads into one of the faster tempo pieces, another Ross original, “Marsheland,” that concludes the first half with an especially fiery exchange between Wilkins and Ross while the rhythm section stokes the energetic theme to the abrupt climax.

 “Waiting on a Solemn Reminiscence” sets a mood conducive to its title as the unit works as one. “King’s Loop,” a short melody transcribe from one of singer-guitarist Emily King’s Instagram posts, is a vibes-harp duet that serves as an interlude to “The Nurturer,” a piece for The Jazz Gallery’s artistic director Rio Sakairi, rendered as a trio with Ross, Dutton, and Mendenhall who holds down the bottom steadily as if keeping her bandmates in check. Ross says, “She slows us down. A group of guys can get competitive: ‘Yeah man, that’s hostile. That’s killing.’ And you’re just not gonna force Kanoa to do that. She is one of the strongest players I”ve ever met.  And I appreciate how firm she is in her intention. That, in turn, directs us in how we make decisions as we play.”

The beautiful melody that is “Gato’s Gift” was penned by multi-instrumentalist and composer Gabrielle Garo who composed most of it before her tenth birthday. Ross claims he added little to it save for the bar of 3/8 within the form. Here as on the following “When My Head Is Cold” harpist Younger joins to add lovely texture and harmonics as Wilkins delivers another of his soaring excursions. “Harmonee” is another short interlude as Corren sits out in favor of Younger, for whom the tune nods to, given the double ‘e’ in the title. The gently swaying “Such Is Life” resonances differently than the other core Good Vibes pieces as Corren shifts to Rhodes. The closing track ‘3-1-2,’ is another gentle piece and is dedicated to Ross’ hometown: South Side Chicago. This work breaks into three sections: the first is played three times – the middle section, once – and the ending is played twice. This of course gives the beautifully crafted theme a kind of “3-1-2” form (south side Chicago’s phone area code). The piece showcases the ‘unified wall of sound’ that this ensemble presents. It builds to an apex first by starting with Ross’ statement of the melody (Wilkins joins shortly thereafter). It then transitions to a compact dissertation on vibes before reprising the theme, which further churns into a soaring saxophone solo, inspired, according to Ross, by Kenny Garrett, a swing element. Finally, the piece slowly fades in full ensemble mode on the theme.

This is no sophomore jinx. Ross’s music is highly imaginative and represents a major step forward for an artist whose future seems limitless already.

 

Related Content

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts

New to Glide

Keep up-to-date with Glide

Twitter