Mettle
Jazz
| Feb 2012
Reviews
Fo
Reviewed 2012-02-12
Reviewed 2012-02-12
MICHAEL MUSILLAMI TRIO + 4: Mettle
Playscape, 2012
AVANT-MODERN JAZZ – Guitarist Musillami, always a forward thinker, expands his well-established trio into a talent-packed septet. Musillami’s beautifully-balanced arrangements keep it tight, walking close enough to straight-up modern jazz to be appealing but with a sly subversive streak too. Tracks 3-10 are a suite. Really good stuff.
Michael Musillami : guitar
Joe Fonda : bass
George Schuller : drums
Russ Johnson : trumpet
Jeff Lederer, Ned Rothenberg : saxes + clarinets
Matt Moran : vibes
Fo’s Picks: 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 11
1. 6:58 – moody intro; guitar stretch, then all trade off over quick drums. Yeah!
2. 14:13 – postmodern walkin’ blues: carefully layered bits, solid solos from all; slips into open space for a trumpet/guitar faceoff towards the end
3. 9:26 – several episodes, mostly uptempo & tense but with calmer breaks
4. 6:26 – hip stroll falls apart in trumpet solo; slumps for guitar/bass scribbles
5. 6:31 – spacey intro; bold, tango-esque tune with vibraphone & sax solos
6. 1:23 – serene trumpet/guitar interlude
7. 2:41 – jabbing solo bass interlude, tense and muscular with much vocalizing
8. 6:15 – dig it! bright, upbeat groove, rolling solos all around, great drums
9. 1:18 – solo drum break, rolls
10. 1:20 – suite wraps up: upbeat statement, then slumps to an end
11. 12:06 – sneaky walk, very cool: great ensemble work, a series of sly solos
[ Fo ] - February 2012
Playscape, 2012
AVANT-MODERN JAZZ – Guitarist Musillami, always a forward thinker, expands his well-established trio into a talent-packed septet. Musillami’s beautifully-balanced arrangements keep it tight, walking close enough to straight-up modern jazz to be appealing but with a sly subversive streak too. Tracks 3-10 are a suite. Really good stuff.
Michael Musillami : guitar
Joe Fonda : bass
George Schuller : drums
Russ Johnson : trumpet
Jeff Lederer, Ned Rothenberg : saxes + clarinets
Matt Moran : vibes
Fo’s Picks: 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 11
1. 6:58 – moody intro; guitar stretch, then all trade off over quick drums. Yeah!
2. 14:13 – postmodern walkin’ blues: carefully layered bits, solid solos from all; slips into open space for a trumpet/guitar faceoff towards the end
3. 9:26 – several episodes, mostly uptempo & tense but with calmer breaks
4. 6:26 – hip stroll falls apart in trumpet solo; slumps for guitar/bass scribbles
5. 6:31 – spacey intro; bold, tango-esque tune with vibraphone & sax solos
6. 1:23 – serene trumpet/guitar interlude
7. 2:41 – jabbing solo bass interlude, tense and muscular with much vocalizing
8. 6:15 – dig it! bright, upbeat groove, rolling solos all around, great drums
9. 1:18 – solo drum break, rolls
10. 1:20 – suite wraps up: upbeat statement, then slumps to an end
11. 12:06 – sneaky walk, very cool: great ensemble work, a series of sly solos
[ Fo ] - February 2012
Recent airplay
Summer Suite: Twenty Ten - Vi. Liv's In Beantown
No Cover, No Minimum (rebroadcast from Mar 2, 2012) — Jul 13, 2021
Thuggish Mornings
Rebop — Jan 08, 2016
Summer Suite: Twenty Ten - V. High Likeability Factor
No Cover, No Minimum: Top Jazz of 2012 — Jan 04, 2013
Piana Dei Greci
No Cover, No Minimum — Oct 19, 2012
Thuggish Mornings
No Cover, No Minimum — Apr 13, 2012
Summer Suite: Twenty Ten - Vi. Liv's In Beantown
Rebop — Apr 10, 2012
Charting
2012-02-12 — 2012-04-15
Jazz
| Week Ending | Airplays |
|---|---|
| Apr 15 | 2 |
| Apr 8 | 1 |
| Apr 1 | 2 |
| Mar 25 | 2 |
| Mar 18 | 1 |
| Mar 11 | 2 |
| Mar 4 | 1 |
| Feb 26 | 2 |
Track listing
| 1. | Piana Dei Greci | ||
| 2. | Blues For The Wounded Warrior | ||
| 3. | Summer Suite: Twenty Ten - I. Iceland | ||
| 4. | Summer Suite: Twenty Ten - Ii. Bald Yet Hip | ||
| 5. | Summer Suite: Twenty Ten - Iii. Piazzolla On The Porch | ||
| 6. | Summer Suite: Twenty Ten - Iv. Nebraska | ||
| 7. | Summer Suite: Twenty Ten - V. High Likeability Factor | ||
| 8. | Summer Suite: Twenty Ten - Vi. Liv's In Beantown | ||
| 9. | Summer Suite: Twenty Ten - Vii. Moe | ||
| 10. | Summer Suite: Twenty Ten - Viii. Barnstable News | ||
| 11. | Thuggish Mornings |