Night Wave

Reviewed: 2018-04-05
Genre: Jazz
FCCs: none
Review: All in all, this is a highly successful recording, with four musicians that are palpably in sympathy with Yuko Fujiyama’s vision, but strong enough in their own right to play equal parts in a vibrant playground of creative music making. There are little poetic texts given to each track in the foldout sleeve as a descriptive clue to what’s going on in each, but the music always tells its own story and you can allow your associations free rein.
If You Like: Cedar Walton, Omar Sosa, Matthew Shipp
Track Review (favorites denoted by *):
1/ Woven Colors (3:18) – uptempo piano solo with intermittent heavy chords> quick stop
*2/ Up Tempo (9:38) –
3/ Romance (1:50) –
*4/ Clash (1:00) – piano starts> slow jam with long drawn-out notes>midtempo jam with cello> quick stop
*5/ Premonition (3:09) – piano starts> slow contemplative jam> stop
*6/ Indignation (3:02) – piano starts> slow hesitating jam swings to fast tempo>quick stop
7/ Fireworks (1:18) – cello starts spacey> hesitating jam> quick stop
8/ Beyond The Soun/ d (6:41) – percussion starts with intermittent beats> slow as molasses jam with random instruments appearing> stop
*9/ Waltz Of The Shadows (1:11) – piano starts> slow short waltz> quick stop
10/ Autumn Whispers (2:53) – almost silent for :50> slow plodding piano duetwith drums> quick stop
*11/ Floating On A Breeze (2;19) – flugelhorn starts> slow duet with piano> quick stop
12/ Leap (2:00) – leap to loud off-kilter back & forth betweEn drums/piano/flugelhorn> quick stop
13/ Starlight (1:14) – piano starts> slow jam> quick stop
*14/ Night Wave (7;58) – piano starts> slow jam builds in volume & intensity, then quiets> violin duet with tympani rolling in the background> tympani solo> slow jam rolls in waves> swings up & back in volume> fade
*15/ Tale Of The Old Tree (2:55) – cornet starts like a crying voice> slow duet with piano – like a conversation> quick fade