Requiem For A Pit Viper

Halley, Rich Quartet
Pine Eagle Records
Jazz | Oct 2011

Reviews

Fo
Reviewed 2011-10-16
RICH HALLEY QUARTET: Requiem for a Pit Viper
Pine Eagle, 2011

AVANT-BOP – This freewheeling set blends out-jazz ideas and energy with some solid bop-derived playing, recalling 1960s experimentation but still sounding fresh. Halley’s huge tenor sax tone and Michael Vlatkovich’s braying trombone get into lively sparring over knotty bass work and jittery, bashing drums. Sour stuff, but pleasingly so.

Fo’s Picks: 2, 3, 4, 6, 9

1. 7:37 – striding/stomping theme, lumpy group improv and good speedy solos
2. 9:43 – oddball tick-tock rhythm & big thumping breaks, solos are wrung out
3. 3:30 – fast and furious horns blaze the trail, only to fall into a slow mope
4. 7:37 – postbop bounce: tight theme, meandering solos over oblique bass
5. 1:42 – horns prod and needle at each other ceaselessly
6. 5:45 – slouching feel: sax & trombone each take a soliloquy over calm bass
7. 7:57 – goofy pseudo-bop: unsteady trombone walk, busy bass, sax stagger
8. 3:46 – a soulful feel: cool laid-back beat, nice sax, listen for squeak toys!
9. 8:50 – relaxed groove: sax stretches out, trombone growls, drums heat up
10. 3:24 – upbeat but lopsided groove, a bit of tropical flavor

[ Fo ] - October 2011

Recent airplay

Maj
RebopDec 13, 2011
Snippet Stop Warp
Music CasseroleDec 10, 2011
Circumambulation
No Cover, No MinimumDec 02, 2011
Wake Up Line
RebopNov 29, 2011
Subterranean Strut
RebopNov 15, 2011
Purple And Gray
Everything.Nov 13, 2011

Charting

2011-10-16 — 2011-12-18 Jazz
Week EndingAirplays
Dec 18 1
Dec 11 1
Dec 4 2
Nov 20 2
Nov 13 1
Nov 6 1
Oct 30 1
Oct 23 1

Track listing

1. Requiem For A Pit Viper
2. Snippet Stop Warp
3. View From The Underpass
4. Circumambulation
5. Purple And Gray
6. Maj
7. Wake Up Line
8. Squeaker
9. Subterranean Strut
10. Afternoon In June