What is it when it ain’t the one, but neither is it the other either? Jalbatrossic maybe….
What we got here, with this particular permutation of the many possible combinations of the area’s deep and diverse musical human resource pool, an underground network known to none but one as “Llama-kin,” is pretty massive dump o’ funk. It ain’t quite funk neccessarily, but it sure do fit in there. It rocks, for sure, but for sure it ain’t whatcha call rock. It’s def “”jam,” generically I mean- it’s way jammier than funk or rock or any of the things that might get called “fusion” or, more broadly (and not unconfusingly), “a fusion.” Think of this, for example: a massive take on Paul McCartney’s “Jet,” with a driving, surf-punk intro section leading into an ‘organic’ reggae groove, just enough to befuddle the listener for just a moment, like:
“Wait, what, Wings?” Well, why not- these mostly 20-somethings, generally approaching or recently passing the 30 mark, (with a few fighting or resisting it) always seem to have a healthy smattering of all different decades in their pedigrees, going back to about 1970 or so. Their informing sources and backgroud resources will surely be found in the old-school jazz of earlier decades, and -I’m tellin’ ya, man, f’reels- these younglings have healthy respect for all forms and traditions, even as they launch from a fairly fusiony springboard (as in, early 70s). It’s the current jam-trend that really gives them the operating context to cut loose and cross over as freely and smoothly as they do, and funk is what it might be if something it must be and it can’t be something else, but a lot of the compositions subject to their interpretation (mostly improv, of course, a la le jam) are taken from the catalog of Rock. And it’s all instrumental, too.
I just overheard that I missed “Sledgehammer” … The Peter Gabriel song? I couldn’t help but butt-in; and, yeah. Bummer! So… to paraphrase (or just plain steal a phrase from) the British press, back to about those early-to-mid- 70’s of which we speak… “This is rock music that looks to jazz for permission to move outward.” The F-label hadn’t been coined quite yet, but bonus points to anyone able to name the band to whom the New Musical Express was referring when they said that.
Now, I KNOW these pics ain’t good for a whole lotta much, but one does what one can. Not much for lighting here in Bishop’s Lounge (3rd floor of the old Baystate Hotel on Strong Ave in Northampton MA), and my trusty SamTab has no flash and only a 2MP camera. You’ve heard this before, if you’ve been reading these adventures as they’ve gone along. I’d just as soon not have a flash available to me; I would have to remember to make sure it was always off (personal policy). Beg pardon for this repeating of info, but we’re moving out into the blog-o-sphere-at-large here at the Dusty Turntable.
Jalbatross is the labor-of-love-child of the Jalbert brothers, who come with history and lineage: Ryan, guitarist with national act The Motet; and Colin, Mammal Dap’s drummer. Somewhere over the last decade or so they plucked up Ryan Degres, another name of no small mention, for more guitar and Darby Wolf (we all know him, right?) on keyboards. Bass is by Rheese Williams, the newest to the fold with just a few years under his belt playing with these guys.
There’s often a lot of “swooshing” in this music, meaning a massive rushing of organ sounds, much like a good ol’ Hammond B-3 (no Leslie in sight, though). Which is not to say keyboards overtake or predominate the sound, just saying it’s a cool and refreshing twist. And it really makes for a massive sound, while giving the guitarists and the rhythm section some space to contemplate their next moves or maybe sort thru their feelings so as to determine which techniques and emotions they’ll choose to let fly in the soonly-upcoming future. Or maybe they’re just calculatng how to amaze the crowd- and they make it look so easy!
Wouldja believe right now they’re doing Michael McDonald? Take all the smooooth and atmospheric sweetness of the post-disco, groove-laden, Steely-schooled rhythm and loose-tight, L.A. super-session playing, add on a thick layer of low-end, rock-solid and massive punch (there’s that word again), and then… wait, what? Segway into Peg! -brilliant and welcome, an unexpected surprise that makes so much sense, it adds a dimension of enjoyment to the popular and stimulating sequence. Besides all that, the demonstration that is delivered could be applied to the entirely unanswered (and un-asked) academic question of what might Larry Carlton, and Lee Ritenour too for that matter, have come to sound like if they had continued to travel farther afield into abstract and free-form, heavy jazz-fusion, rather than the precise, pleasant, and certainly no less valid and beautiful, adult-contempory, sort-of settling-into their latter-day, elder statesmen stature?
Just thinking. And saying, too, that even as such comparisons are not to be made lightly, these boys are -or will be- at that lofty level of feel and technique, skill and sensibility, overall sound and overarching musicality. And to think, I had no idea what I was gonna do tonight- SO glad I caught this show! […too bad I had to ditch a drunk buddy to make this scene…]
Jimm O’D ~ The Dusty Turntable
The Dusty Turntable 