Orbits
By The Circling Sun
Just as co-ordinates in rock culture shift, so, too, in jazz, which is in a constant state of reinvention.
Two decades ago, for example, very few were talking about the late saxophonist Pharoah Sanders or pianist/harpist Alice Coltrane, but now no self-respecting music lover – jazz or otherwise – would be without some of their spiritually inclined albums.
The 2023 Spirits album by Auckland’s The Circling Sun collective, based around drummer, producer/arranger Julien Dyne and saxophonist Cameron Allen – both with respectable careers – tapped into 1960s Latin American jazz and bebop. Now, with Orbits, they reach even further with their amalgam of Afro-Cuban sounds, John and Alice Coltrane, multi-instrumentalist Yusef Lateef and the Brazilian groove of Milton Nascimento, Airto Moreira and vocalist Flora Purim. It’s a sound both soulful and sophisticated, as much for the head as the feet.
The seven minute-plus opener Constellation pulls together threads of warm synths, yearning John Coltrane saxophone, Chick Corea-like keyboards and frequent partners Love Infinity Choir on backing vocals; Mizu and the percussive Flying go further down a vibrant Brazilian route and the mood drops for the beautifully understated Amina.
Wynton Marsalis spoke of music containing a lot of information. This ensemble includes musicians who have worked with Avantdale Bowling Club, Nathan Haines, Chaii, Relaxomatic Project and Dave Dobbyn. That’s considerable background information brought to this seductive, sometimes humid and engaging Latin jazz-influenced album.
Session 23
By Ron Samsom
Speaking of jazz reinventing itself … when improvised rock of the late 1960s (Cream, Jimi Hendrix) bled across to Miles Davis, Chick Corea and others, jazz rock – or fusion – arrived.
This new album by drummer/leader Ron Samsom opens with Wrong Shit, a thrilling chunk of post-fusion with guitarist Keith Price unleashing a fragmented hailstorm and Callum Passells shredding on his howling, yowling saxophone. It’s a gauntlet thrown down by the Auckland quartet, and accepting the challenge leads to the unexpected directions within the nine-minute Bridger Ripple, which opens in a quiet cantina, picks up the pace slowly, reinvents itself with a percussive breakdown and the pairing of ethereal guitar and alto before getting down to busyness then a quiet denouement as the lights go down. A journey of musical reveals.
Elsewhere are the tricky Vibi with its zigzag course led by Samsom’s drum patterns and a muscular solo by bassist Cameron McArthur, the clever stop-start ballad Falling Stars and the shuffling, propulsive Macombs, which balances the tension of expectation and the almost poppy melodies that emerge.
Samsom has appeared on more than a dozen albums but never with McArthur, Price and Passells together. Yet Session 23 sounds like a working band you’d hope to hear more from. Especially unshackled, as on that arresting opener or the chugging, remix-ready, groove-riding Macombs.
Black Sand
By Clear Path Ensemble
With two albums and a remix collection behind them, Wellington’s Clear Path Ensemble led by multi-instrumentalist Cory Champion has steered a rewardingly unpredictable course through funk, Latin shuffle, out-there jazz, ambience and electronica. With random needle drops you could be in the zone of 1970s Weather Report or a funk band on Soul Train.
On the more measured Black Sand they tease you in through the delicate, flute-forward From Winds and slow rising Temple Block Sustain, with Champion’s vibes frequently central. The flowing Cascade d’Arts delivers over minimalist percussion and vibes rhythm.
This is a quieter Clear Path Ensemble, easing closer to 1950s West Coast cool with Latin and Afro-Cuban influences (Calypso, the flute and percussion on the lively Best Life). A judiciously restrained album for downtime.
Orbits and Black Sand are available on vinyl and digitally; Session 23, digitally and on CD.
