UNDER RADAR: From Bimhuis to Empty Bottle

by Bob Pomeroy

I wasn't very interested in jazz for most of the 90's. I had been a pretty big jazz fan when I lived in Michigan. Ann Arbor always had something going on and the people at the local record stores were musically omnivorous. I remember going to buy a Dead Kennedys record and having Chris the store manager talk me into buying a Cecil Taylor disc too. His logic, they'll both peel paint off the walls and drive the neighbors crazy. I lost touch when I moved down to Florida. Few cutting edge jazz performers made it to this part of the world and I just didn't see the records in stores.

My interest in jazz was rekindled through some unlikely sources. At one extreme were the anarchist punks in the Ex. This Dutch band obliterates imagined boundaries between genres by playing with jazz improvisers, ethnic musicians and radical theater groups. The Ex pointed the way to the Dutch, and by extension European, improvisation community. Meanwhile, interesting things were filtering down from Chicago. Post-rock groups like Tortoise and Gastra Del Sol pointed the way to jazz improvisers living in the Windy City. As I followed these leads, I discovered that exciting jazz is being made right now. In this installment of Under Radar I want to share some of these discoveries with you.

FROM BIMHUIS...

The Bimhuis is the focal point of jazz and improvised music in Amsterdam. Located on a canal a short walk from the Rembrant House museum, the Bimhuis is both a concert hall and home to the union for improvising musicians (BIM). For 25 years, this venue has provided a forum for European and American musicians to meet and exchange ideas and inspirations. You can find out more about this venue at www.bimhuis.nl.

Back in May, I saw Michael Moore playing with the Eric Boeren 4tet at the Bimhuis. Moore is a very lyrical and creative multi-reed player originally from the Pacific Northwest. Since making his home in Amsterdam, Moore has become an important player on the scene. In addition to the Eric Boeren 4tet, Moore plays with the ICP Orchestra and Available Jelly

Moore's latest turn as a leader is Monitor (between the lines Westendstrasse 24 D-60325 Frankfurt/Main Germany). This disc illustrates several characteristics of the Dutch improvisation scene. The trio on this disc is unusual by traditional jazz standards. Moore is joined by ICP band mate Tristan Honsinger on cello and Cor Fuhler on piano keyolin and organ. Sonically, the trio draws on the timbers and textures of chamber music. European improvisers are keen to use any ideas that make sense musically. Drawing on the Classical tradition to serve jazz ends works, so why no use it. Compositionally you can hear the improvisers playing games with each other. Nowhere is this more evident than on "Race in Space for Face" where the three players engage in something approaching a game of tag. Cello, keyboard and clarinet lines seem to be chasing each other, with the chased often becoming the pursuers.

The title of this essay almost comes to life on Misha Mengelberg's new double CD, "Two Days in Chicago" (Hatology 4106 Therwil Switzerland). Misha Mengelberg was one of the founders of the Bimhuis and has been a major figure in European jazz since the 1960's. This disc came about when Mengelberg brought a group to the US for the 1998 Chicago International Film Festival. While they were in town, the Dutch improvisers met up with local players for some recording sessions and concerts. Disc One Hamid Drake, Fred Lomberg-Holms and Kent Kessler are some of the Americans who join Misha in the studio. I'm particularly pleased with the improvisation called "Chicago Quartet 1" featuring saxophonist Fred Anderson. Disc Two is a live recording of Misha's performance at the Velvet Lounge which is run by the legendary Fred Anderson. . This set features Mengelberg improvising on his compositions like Rollo 2 and jazz standards including "Body and Soul" and 'Round Midnight." Mengelberg's playing rewards careful listening. His playing is subtle and he's likely to throw curves to whoever shares a bandstand with him. Part of the fun is seeing how the tangents develop.

...TO EMPTY BOTTLE

The Empty Bottle has become a Mecca of sorts for jazz musicians from around the world. It's a rather unlikely jazz haven. The club still books more rock acts than jazz and it has the grungy ambiance of a recently converted warehouse. When the owners of the club decided to let author/musician John Corbett and saxophonist Ken Vandermark book a weekly free jazz improvisation night several years ago, I'm sure they didn't expect it to be one of the catalysts for the renaissance of jazz in Chicago. That's what happened though. The Chicago jazz scene hasn't been this vital since the heyday of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Music (AACM) in the late 1960's.

Ken Vandermark is one of the major movers behind the Chicago jazz renaissance. He manages to play at least three nights a week when he's in town and keeps several different groups working at the same time. One estimate guessed that Vandermark is actively involved with as many as 20 different groups. His most active groups include the Vandermark 5, the improvisation oriented DKV trio, the Swedish ALY Trio and Steam, a piano based quartet.

One of the things that drives Vandermark to work in so many different setting with so many different players is his striving to learn from the experience. One of the best jazz records of 1999 is "Design in Time" by Ken Vandermark's Sound in Action Trio (Delmark 4121 N. Rockwell, Chicago, IL 60618). On this outing, Vandermark does some of his most lyrical playing while exploring concepts of time Joining Ken in this trio are Vandermark 5 drummer Tim Mulvenna and Robert Berry who played drums off and on with Sun Ra from the Arkestra's inception in the late 1950's. It's an unusual line up, but it sounds so right. Barry and Mulvenna have such a marvelous chemistry that you absolutely forget all the hideous drum solos you've heard at rock concerts. When Ken puts together a group, he looks for a combination that will bring the most out of everyone involved. He succeeds beautifully with the Sound in Action Trio.

"Last Option" is the latest release from another fantastic Chicago area group, 8 Bold Souls (Thrill Jockey P.O. Box 476794 Chicago, IL 60647). 8 Bold Souls is lead by saxophonist Edward Wilkerson, a veteran of the AACM who has played with Muhal Richard Abrams, Rosco Mitchell and other major figures in the avant-garde. 8 Bold Souls carry on the AACM tradition of exploring great Black music, ancient to future with a set that reaches back to New Orleans street bands and looks ahead to an optimistic future. Along the way, you catch a hint of Eastern European folk music mixing in with hints of Ellington.

One of the things I really like about "Last Option" is the wonderful sound of the ensemble. The group projects a much bigger, richer sound than you'd expect. Part of the richness of the groups sound comes from the fullness of the low end. Cello, tuba, string bass and trombone give the 8 Bold Souls music very lush, full textures Wilkerson makes great use of the colors available to him in this group. The horn player share melody space with the strings. Trumpet plays against tuba. Whatever else you can say, 8 Bold Souls are no where near exercising their last musical option..

If you're at all curious about the music I've been talking about in this edition of Under Radar, check out my paid guest host appearance on the Charles Vann Memorial Jazz Club on WMNF 88.5 FM on February 19th. The show starts at 6pm. The DKV Trio (featuring Ken Vandermark, drummer Hamid Drake and bassist Kent Kessler) come to Budious Maximus in St. Petersburg on February 25th. The concert is part of the emit concert series. See you there!