Septagon
Reviews
Fo
Reviewed 2013-03-20
Reviewed 2013-03-20
BLAKE MEISTER: Septagon
Inner Circle, 2012
MODERN JAZZ – Debut release by a bassist out of the Baltimore/DC area, all original material. His quintet is made up of some heavy hitters, and he’s on Greg Osby’s label too, so that should tell you to expect a bit of adventure here. Meister’s tunes are friendly but come in from unusual angles, with guitar and sax (or flute) often working in tandem against gently twisted rhythm or through strangely shaped harmonies.
Blake Meister : bass
Gary Thomas : tenor sax, flute
Paul Bollenback : guitar
Marc Copland : piano
Ralph Peterson : drums
Fo’s Picks: 1, 2, 3, 6, 7
1. 8:53 – rolling midtempo: dark jazz club feel, sax & guitar shadow each other
2. 8:37 – gentle intro; mysterious tick-tock tune, relaxed but full of odd angles
3. 5:51 – solo drums into hard modern swing: very twisty melody, tough bass
4. 8:26 – sweet, exotic ballad with busy bass intro, gently sloping solos, flute
5. 8:25 – odd, deliberately paced melody stalks and drifts, questioning solos
6. 8:22 – dark but snappy groove: close to straight-ahead jazz but still oblique
7. 7:42 – very nice smoky ballad with flute: serene bass solo, sparkling guitar
8. 7:34 – abstracted blues: plodding theme, but slippery guitar & sax solos
[ Fo ] - 20 March 2013
Inner Circle, 2012
MODERN JAZZ – Debut release by a bassist out of the Baltimore/DC area, all original material. His quintet is made up of some heavy hitters, and he’s on Greg Osby’s label too, so that should tell you to expect a bit of adventure here. Meister’s tunes are friendly but come in from unusual angles, with guitar and sax (or flute) often working in tandem against gently twisted rhythm or through strangely shaped harmonies.
Blake Meister : bass
Gary Thomas : tenor sax, flute
Paul Bollenback : guitar
Marc Copland : piano
Ralph Peterson : drums
Fo’s Picks: 1, 2, 3, 6, 7
1. 8:53 – rolling midtempo: dark jazz club feel, sax & guitar shadow each other
2. 8:37 – gentle intro; mysterious tick-tock tune, relaxed but full of odd angles
3. 5:51 – solo drums into hard modern swing: very twisty melody, tough bass
4. 8:26 – sweet, exotic ballad with busy bass intro, gently sloping solos, flute
5. 8:25 – odd, deliberately paced melody stalks and drifts, questioning solos
6. 8:22 – dark but snappy groove: close to straight-ahead jazz but still oblique
7. 7:42 – very nice smoky ballad with flute: serene bass solo, sparkling guitar
8. 7:34 – abstracted blues: plodding theme, but slippery guitar & sax solos
[ Fo ] - 20 March 2013
Recent airplay
Blackout
Green Copper Radio — May 22, 2013
Market East
No Cover, No Minimum — May 17, 2013
Sunset
Rebop — May 16, 2013
Blackout
Swedish Morning Radio — May 12, 2013
The Grind
No Cover, No Minimum — May 10, 2013
Sunset
Rebop — May 09, 2013
Charting
2013-03-24 — 2013-05-27
Jazz
| Week Ending | Airplays |
|---|---|
| May 26 | 1 |
| May 19 | 3 |
| May 12 | 2 |
| May 5 | 1 |
| Apr 28 | 2 |
| Apr 21 | 2 |
| Apr 14 | 1 |
| Apr 7 | 2 |
Track listing
| 1. | Blackout | ||
| 2. | Sunken City | ||
| 3. | The Grind | ||
| 4. | Falling (In Slow Motion) | ||
| 5. | Cynic | ||
| 6. | Market East | ||
| 7. | Sunset | ||
| 8. | Septagon |