Dave Douglas - Strange Liberation

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Music reviews of Strange Liberation

Music Review: Dave Douglas reinvents himself again . . .
Rating: 5 Stars

First of all, he's now got himself a real band--at least that's what he says in the liner notes. And what a band it is! Chris Potter, fast emerging as THE tenor sax voice of his generation, is on board. If he's still a member of the Dave Holland Quintet, that means he regularly plays in just about the two hottest gigs around. In the past couple of years, his tone has deepened, his soloing has become at once more assured and adventurous, and his general presence more authoritative.

Uri Caine has also emerged as a monster keys man. Playing Fender Rhodes exclusively on this outing--which will likely make purists moan in despair (but so what)--he manages to create exactly the right vibe and colors for this thoroughly contemporary electric jazz set. Moreover, he manages to get quite a wide range of expression from an instrument not known for its tonal and timbral versatility.

I've always thought James Genus was underrated. A player equally at home on acoustic or electric bass, he gets a weighty tone from his acoustic and creates a very funky feel on electric, perfectly a propos in this setting which straddles tradition and innovation.

Clarence Penn is an inspired choice for the drum chair. A player of both subtlety and power, he constantly sets a tasty table for the front liners.

Douglas's playing on this outing is the best I've ever heard from him. He sports a darker tone with a new-found gravitas. Yes, he can still be very declamatory and expressive, but he seems more interested in shaping a unique sound signature and finding his proper place in it than in showing off his not inconsiderable chops, a welcome development for one as gifted as he is. And his soloing seems to have a new architectural sense that notches his playing up to a new level.

The ringer here is guest Bill Frisell on guitar. After listening to him and the leader play together, creating a soundscape so natural as to sound almost inevitable, one wonders why they'd never played together before, and one also imagines what this band could become were he a permanent member. Indeed, his Heartland jazz aesthetic is all over this disc (esp., "Mountains from the Train," featuring some very cool and atmospheric harmonics and other guitar effects. One of the most poignant moments is a tender passage in "Just Say This," where Frisell magically comps behind a muted trumpet solo of both great power and delicacy from Douglas. Potter's solo which follows is also among his best on disc, and Frisell tops things off with an absolutely stunningly beautiful twangy solo.

This band has the capability of a huge range of emotional statement, with its general MO being a highly charged approach situated in a slightly eerie Americana vibe obviously largely a result of Mr. Frisell being on board. But there's also a faux-50's number, "Rock of Billy"; a turbo-charged bop-samba, "Seventeen"; a Monkish tune, "Skeeter-ism," whose genesis, according to the liner notes, came from an eight-year-old friend of Douglas's trying to play "Blue Monk"; a wacky waltz, "The Frisell Dream," featuring some gorgeous ensemble playing; a nifty piece of impressionism, "Passing Through"; a sprightly ballad that morphs into a Latin-feeling number featuring probably the finest Fender Rhodes solo on record plus nearly topped by a marvelous solo from Potter; and a rocking, rollicking Nu Bop tune, "Catalyst," magically propelled by Clarence Penn, that eventually works itself up into a near freak-out, largely powered by a mind-boggling solo from Frisell, with Potter upping the ante on his brilliantly expressive solo, until the entire band just kinda blows everything out of the water, fading out to some Frisell weirdness. Quite a send-off.

All in all, this is a tremendous disc, even topping, I think Freak-In, which I didn't think possible. A powerful, endearing musical statement that should appeal to all with open ears.

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