Aided past times an all-star cast of jazz, jam, bluegrass, together with funk musicians, Jeff Coffin explores an impressive variety of textures together with styles, gracing each alongside his peerless energy, musicianship, together with technique. On Mutopia, Coffin presents the well-nigh consummate painting demo withal of his eclectic musical vision. Two steps beyond an otherworldly fusion of Ornette Coleman, The Meters, together with Medeski, Martin, together with Wood, Mutopia puts Jeff Coffin at the forefront of a novel generation of improvising musicians for whom boundaries are meaningless together with everyone is invited to the party.
Jeff Coffin's move alongside Béla Fleck's Flecktones has solely been somewhat reflective of his efforts equally a leader. The saxophonist/composer is quite able inwards a to a greater extent than progressive, accessibly contemporary trend to limited his personalized music, which is inwards many ways noun together with cleverly rendered. While recent efforts bring veered toward a commercialized approach, this CD alongside his Mu'tet bears distinct elements of the Jazz Crusaders together with the showtime bands of Derek Trucks. No incertitude the add-on of a stout horn department on a few selections, together with collaboration alongside the keyboardist together with flute histrion Kofi Burbridge -- good known for his move alongside the Trucks band -- has a lot to exercise alongside how this grouping reacts together with responds. All inwards all, there's approximately really hip music here, ranging from the 7/4 funk alongside dual electrical bass guitarists on "Al's Greens" including a banjo solo from boss homo Fleck, to "Move Your Rug" alongside varying beats inwards half-dozen together with 7 mixing upwardly the complicated together with simplistic horns alongside a New Orleans beat. The outstanding, developed, dramatic, Middle Eastern flavored "L'Esperance" is introduced past times Coffin's resplendent, floating mbira, thence his tenor sax together with flute foreshadowed Burbridge's desert-to-jungle flute solo. "Turiya" is a calm, serene, together with beautiful tribute to the like shooting fish in a barrel Alice Coltrane alongside Coffin on soprano sax together with Burbridge on acoustic grand piano. The molasses irksome "Sweet Magnolias" offers a legitimate blues framework for Coffin's legato tenor, together with a bonus track, "Emma Ya," is a soul deep, calorie-free reggae tune. Trombonists Barry Green or Roy Agee are added for the funk-with-a twist rail "Tag" or the Stax trend soul popular cutting "One In, One Out" respectively, alongside Burbridge jammin' on the Hammond B-3 organ. Agee, trumpeter Rod McGaha, together with sousaphonist Joe Murphy expand the horizons of "Move Your Rug." Also nowadays is electrical bass guitarist Felix Pastorius, ane of the twin sons of the legendary Jaco Pastorius, together with immature homo Flecktone, drummer Roy "Future Man" Wooten. The collective energy, squad work, together with top-drawer powerfulness of Coffin, non to advert the diverseness of the recording, is hard to deny. This mightiness move the best endeavor withal for the Mu'tet, overstep to bottom.
When saxophonist Jeff Coffin joined Béla Fleck & the Flecktones inwards 1997, he righted their ship. That quartet had released iii stellar CDs during 1990-1992, exactly when master copy keyboardist/harmonica histrion Howard Levy left, a void was created. The remaining trio of Fleck (banjo), Victor Wooten (bass) together with Futureman (drum synthesizer) drifted earlier Coffin contributed to Grammy-winning comebacks from Outbound (2000) to The Hidden Land (2006).
Like all Flecktones, Coffin is meliorate suited inside that ace improvising quartet than on his own, withal ii novel solo projects request out his versatility. Coffin’s latest self-titled Mu’tet release improves upon his handful of preceding solo CDs, mainly because of his surrounding, interactive cast. Arc of the Circle, alongside keyboardist Charlie Peacock, is its polar opposite, an improvisational blend of modern classical together with ECM-like influences.
On Mutopia, Futureman (Roy Wooten, Victor’s brother) plays acoustic drums throughout, rather than his guitar-shaped electrical SynthAxe, together with Fleck together with Wooten look on ane rail each. But it isn’t the Flecktones’ presence that makes Mutopia tick. Fleck’s cameo is on “Bubble Up,” a buoyant release inwards 7/8 fourth dimension that’s highlighted past times the Hammond organ lines of Kofi Burbridge (who adds pianoforte together with flute elsewhere) together with Coffin’s two-man horn department alongside trombonist Roy Agee. On the dreamy “Al’s Greens,” Wooten trades solos alongside primary bassist Felix Pastorius, the 26-year-old boy of like shooting fish in a barrel bass neat Jaco. Their exchanges are thence seamless that it’s hard to nation them apart-no pocket-size feat, considering Wooten’s musical athleticism.
Coffin plays tenor, alto together with baritone saxes on the New Orleans-tinged pieces “One In, One Out” together with “Move Your Rug.” The saxophonist, who also plays soprano, flute together with percussion, must move given additional credit for the coming-out party of Pastorius, the bravest immature participant since Ravi Coltrane took upwardly saxophone. Futureman’s dexterity on actual drums, together with Burbridge’s all-purpose playing, add together to a CD worthy of Flecktones comparisons.
Arc of the Circle merits no such comparisons, exactly that’s past times design. Coffin together with Peacock (who plays piano, synthesizer, Wurlitzer together with toy piano) completely improvised the basic tracks earlier Marc Ribot (electric together with resonator guitars), Tony Miracle (electronics together with laptop computer) together with invitee players contributed to the derangements. Peacock may move best known equally a producer who’s covered a broad spectrum from Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe to Amy Grant. He uses both grand together with toy pianoforte on the opening championship track, engaging Coffin’s tenor sax into a game of musical tag.
Ribot together with drummer Derrek Phillips contribute heavily to the subsequent, nearly accessible “Rice Dice Mice,” exactly well-nigh of the remaining pieces purposely avoid having a rhythmic anchor. Phillips plays on ii other abstract pieces, “Downstairs Room of You” together with “Redux: Porky, Boots together with Floyd.” The residue is by together with large freeform Peacock together with Coffin (on tenor, clarinet, bass clarinet, flute together with percussion). If your tastes run toward the Flecktones, Mutopia is the selection of these ii releases; if yous thin toward gratuitous jazz together with Charles Ives, it’s Arc of the Circle.
Track listing:
1 Tag 3:29
2 Al's Greens 7:25
3 Bubble Up 5:26
iv One In, One Out 6:06
v Turiya 10:14
6 L'Esperance 7:49
7 Sweet Magnolias 9:19
8 Move Your Rug 7:18
nine Emma Ya (Hidden Track)
Personnel:
Saxophone, Flute – Jeff Coffin
Drum – Roy Wooten
Electric Bass – Felix Pastorius
Piano, Organ, Keyboards, Flute – Kofi Burbridge
Guest РAlana Rocklin, Barry Green, Black Cat Sylvester, B̩la Fleck, Chris Walters (5), Doug Belote, Pat Bergeson, R. Scott Bryan, Rod McGaha, Roy Agee, Victor Wooten
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