Concert Review: Alice Coltrane Tribute At UCLA

Sunday Night at Royce Hall promised to be a brilliant night of improvisational music as a tribute to the late great Alice Coltrane. Pianist, Harpist, and wife of John Coltrane, Alice did much to further Indian spiritual and musical influences in the world of avant-garde jazz. However, Sunday's show was truly a mixed bag, as much of the tribute failed to live up to the high bar of Coltrane's legacy . At best, as during Nels Cline's flowing and masterful set and McCoy Tyner's the freely improvised Jazz explorations were beautiful and inspiring, yet at worst, the indulgent noodling of some of the players seemed amateurish and lacked any sort of focus.
“When it rains, it promises an auspicious event,” announced Rhada Botofasina before launching the concert with a a prayer of the Hare Krishna religion that Coltrane was so devoted to. Performed by Botofasina on harp and vocals, accompanied by a pianist and the great Miguel Atwood-Fegueson on viola, the combination of jazz influences and gospel stylings with Indian sacred music was appealing, yet the pentatonic harp arpeggios and block piano chords lacked the spark that made them unique in the hands of Alice Coltrane. Botofasina was followed by free-jazz violin luminary Michael White, whose fiery improvisation was excellent; his performance, however, was marred by the extraneous presence of Leisei Chen, a vocalist who can best be described as a jazz hybrid of Bjork and Yoko Ono. Free-jazz saxophonist Daniel Carter improvised on a theme for solo saxophone that showed off his excellent, almost Paul Desmond-like, cool and breathy tone.
Carter was followed by Kyp Malone of TV on the Radio and jazz guitarist Nels Cline of Wilco fame, who played a remarkable Jazz rendition of a Hare Krishna prayer, accompanied by a bassist and a drummer. Cline is a remarkable player, taking risks and playing out yet firmly grounded in the jazz tradition of chord melody. Malone, on the other hand, sounded frightfully amateurish, frequently hitting what sounded like wrong notes; it made me wonder if this was indeed the same gentleman who was responsible for TV On the Radio's brilliant 'Dear Science'. After some spacey incidental music, Coltrane's nephew Stephen Ellison- aka Flying Lotus- walked on stage to warm applause. Presenting a monologue of Coltrane's on various religious and spiritual topics accompanied by a video montage taken on a trip to India with his Aunt, Flying Lotus was highly underwhelming; his ambient knob twiddling behind the video was barely noticeable and added no valuable texture, and the electric harpist played the same pentatonic arpeggios that failed to inspire when first played by Rhada Botofasina; Miguel Atwood Fergueson's viola was this piece's only saving grace. 
At this point the Nels Cline group, featuring Alex Cline on drums, harpist Zeena Parkins, bassist Todd Sickafoose, violinist Jeff Gauthier, a tamboura, and a cello in addition to Cline's guitar, provided a magnificent rendition of Charlie Haden's 'For Turiya ' that reached the sublime cosmic sound that Coltrane pursued throughout her career. The swirling blend of strings, percussion and guitar engaged in a group improvisation that eventually coalesced into a swinging groove, anchored around the bass. Great Stuff.
After intermission, Dutch free jazz dummer Hans Bennick provided the comic relief with a slapstick performance that involved a snare drum, his shoe, the stage, his cheek, and a whole bunch of drum sticks. He was followed by Kyp Malone and company, who preformed a god-awful rendition of 'Govinda Je Je' that lacked all sense of structure, time, and musicality and would have been more at home on the Venice Beach boardwalk than at the esteemed Royce Hall. Ouch.
Following that disaster, Jazz deity McCoy Tyner graced us with fifteen minutes of the most sublime music that I have ever heard. Commanding an orchestra of sounds from the Steinway grand, Tyner's coaxed a wash of pure sound in block chords, fast runs, and sensitive and sophisticated chords and melodies. It seemed that Tyner was acknowledging the subpar quality of the performance when he failed to show up on stage when Michelle Coltrane beckoned for the closing rendition of 'A Love Supreme' that featured incredible viola from Miguel Atwood Fergueson, but was utterly ruined by Michelle Coltrane's miserable tambourine playing of. 
Overall, the Alice Coltrane tribute paired the transcendent with the lousy and resulted in the most mixed-bag evening of music I have ever attended.

A Little Mystic Brew for You

This is one righteous cut, O My Brothers! Sampled to great effect by A Tribe Called Quest on 'Electric Relaxation' and Madlib on 'Mystic Bounce', this tune by the great Ronnie Foster stands on its own as a really funky example of the brilliant soul Jazz coming out of Blue Note in the late '60's. The bass line is classic, the guitar chords are out of this world, the organ is virtuoso status,  the melody is a simple and catchy pentatonic riff, and the whole thing is very street, very gritty, and yet as smooth as butta. This is the bedrock of hip-hop. Make your day brighter with this:

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Live Review: John McLaughlin and the 4th Dimension at UCLA

John McLaughlin is an interesting figure. On one hand a self professed Jazz snob who's life was forever altered by Coltrane's 'A Love Supreme' in 1965 and a favorite of the aging Fillmore/Woodstock/paisley set, McLaughlin's technically impeccable and flashy guitar playing made him a household name in the fusion world with the Mahavishnu Orchestra, the closest Jazz ever got to metal, and Shakti, the closest Jazz ever got to Raga. On Wednesday night, McLaughlin and his band were in fine form for a 2 hour extravaganza of chops, chops and more chops at UCLA. Flanked by Etienne M'bappe on bass, Mark Mondesir on drums, and Gary Husband on keyboards and drums, this well oiled fusion machine was loud and fast, yet firmly based their improvisations in the modal tradition of Coltrane and Miles (McLaughlin made his name on Miles Davis' groundbreaking 'In a Silent Way' and 'Bitches Brew' releases). McLaughlin's simple setup (one guitar and petal board, no amp- just PA) allowed for a great opportunity to see, in its purest form, the legendary finger work that made him a master in the first place. However, the lack of an amp also gave his guitar a slightly cold, digital and processed tone that left one wishing for the return of the warm amp driven distorted tone of old. This is not to say he wasn't loud and distorted though; some of the old-gaurd season ticket holders in the front rows seemed appropriately offended, and exited before the encore.
 McLaughlin played fast, of course, but with sensitivity, confidence, and a whammy bar, which added a Jeff Beck like touch to his playing. The odd time signatures seemed natural to the band, who can play 11/8 with just as much ease as 4/4. M'Bappe was featured on 'Recovery', which displayed him to be one of the best and more versatile bassists working today. Husband, whose keyboard washes and synth lines were prominent throughout the night, doubled on drums and engaged, during 'Mother Tongues', in by far the best drum battle I have ever heard, live or on record. Mondesir's and Husband's differing approaches to the instrument contrasted nicely, and both played highly musically and inventively throughout, with fills ranging from bossa nova to all out chaos.
The night of incredibly intense music ended with a peaceful and zen encore, 'Light at the End of the World', befitting McLaughlin's spiritual worldview.
Overall, an amazing night of loud, complex, spiritual and inspired music.

Setlist:
1. Raju
2. Dissident
3. Recovery
4. Fine Lines
5. New Blues
6. Senor
7. Sully
8. Hijacked
9. To The One
10. Mother Tongues

Encore:
11. Light at the End of the World


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Concert Review: Ornette Coleman Quartet with Flea at UCLA

Ornette Coleman is one badass 80 year old trailblazer. Ornette's classic '50's and '60's Atlantic oeuvre (check out the 'Beauty Is A Rare Thing' boxset to have your mind seriously blown) is some of the most seriously hip and boppin' music of all time; from the time of its release until today, the music remains relevant, mindblowing, and revolutionary. The inventor of free jazz was in fine form last week at UCLA. Playing with his son Denardo, who has been his drummer since 10 years of age, acoustic bassist Tony Falanga and electric bassist Al McDowell, Coleman was spellbindingly phenomenal as he and his crack band improvised their way through Coleman tunes both classic and newer. I was initially hesitant about the two bass lineup, but it turned out to be for the best; the acoustic bass played voice like bowed leads and provided a throbbing rhythmic foundation, whereas the electric bass served as a guitar like chordal instrument. Ornette's tone has not diminished with his age, and he still conjures up human-like cries from his alto that echo with the ghosts of bop and the blues. Far out stuff, this was. "9/11", a relatively new song, was one of the scariest things I've ever heard; Denardo's throbbing disco beat combined with Tony Falanga's mournful droning bass and Ornette's piercing alto for one funky, and harrowing tune. Other highlights were classics, among them "Peace", "Blues Connotation" and perhaps Coleman's most famous and enduring tune, the encore "Lonely Woman". One interesting moment came when Coleman soloed over a Bach piece played by Falanga. Tré cool. Less cool was the collaboration with Japanese singer Mari Okubu, who sang like an operatic Yoko Ono.

One of the most special moments of the night came when a third bassist walked on stage, this one playing a Fender jazz model, and wearing a suit, tie, and green hair. Yes, green hair. He almost outdid Ornette's outrageous suit. This monster was none other than Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, who prepared to shred through the heads of Ornette Coleman standards with virtuoso skill and funky intensity. Announced the day of the show, the addition of Flea gave the evening a fusion/funk turn that set it apart from a typical Coleman gig.

Overall, a brilliant evening with a master who continues to defy convention, and a rocker who proved his chops in jazz once and for all.

Here is the setlist:

1. Following the Sound
 2. Sleep Talking 
3. Jordan 
4. 9/11
 5. Sphinx
 6. Turnaround
 7. Blues Connotation
 8. Bach 
9. Mari 
10. Out of Order 
11. City Living
 12. Peace
 13. Call to Duty 
14. Dancing in Your Head 
15. Song World
 16. Song X

Encore:
 17. Lonely Woman

RIP Marion Brown

Sad news, jazzers (and all you dance music-freak Pitchfork reading hipsters who should educate yourself in a little boplicity). According to magazine/blog/record-lable/all-around-source-of-funk WaxPoetics, "Alto saxophone great Marion Brown died in Hollywood, Florida, on October 18. He was seventy-nine." Sad news indeed folks. See, for those not in the know, Brown was a rare thing; a free jazz great who thrived on melody and lyricism in addition to creative free-for-all blowing sessions of mad anarchic chaos in sound (though he did his fare share of that shyzer too; check this puppy from 1967 out, called Porto Novo [if you can't make it through, just skip to the middle where it gets really intense]). He played on John Coltrane's monumental statement of jazz liberation, Ascension, as well as some great Archie Shepp records worth checking out, among others. But above all, this guy had pure soul. The beauty of a tune like 'Vista' here is just marvelous; reflecting the influence of 'Trane and Sanders yet with his own sensitive finesse, this group gets the afro-spiritual-Jazz thing going like no other. Man, this cat will be missed. Marion, Phat Fellas salutes you.