Jazz is killing itself

I only learned today (the first draft was written sometime in September) that Rashied Ali died in August. Look through his credits and you'll notice he was not part of John Coltrane's classic quartet, nor part of what jazz critics consider his landmark albums (Ascension being his last, the monolithic 40 minute freeform piece that envelopes itself from a simple 3 note riff). His first record was Meditations, the only record featuring both Ali and Elvin Jones on drums, where the band was dense, too dense for Jones and longstanding pianist McCoy Tyner, but his most famous work, ironically, was his duet record 'Interstellar Space' which featured solely him and Coltrane. Ali, along with several prodigious free jazz talents formed Coltrane's remaining records until his death in 1967, ostensibly emancipating a trio of amazing musicians from under the band leader's shadow.

Ali made the smallest impression in the jazz world, joining avant-garde groups that specialised in the works of Coltrane and Albert Ayler; Pharoah Sanders, who was once described by Ornette Coleman as "probably the best tenor (saxophonist) in the world", created 'The Creator has a Master Plan', instantly identifiable by the overblown saxophone notes, the arpeggiating flute work in the background, the openness of modal chords, and its immediate lyricism. The 32 minute track begins meditional, helped by the cyclical two chord pattern, but gathers momentum throughout and explodes around the 18th minute. Melodies fly off each other, the flute and sax continually reaching for the higher registers and that voice that caterwauls in the background slowly taking centre stage as the percussion and bass somehow manage to contain a steady groove. This is jazz hitting the peak of experimentalism, danger and spiritual liberation. Finally we have the late Alice Coltrane, and her record Journey to Satchidananda is a must-listen for anyone interested in jazz, traditional Indian music, anything in between, and music in general. Also, check out the track' Translinear Light' from her last album.

Now with an opening two paragraphs like that, you'd be forgiven into thinking that I've kinda forgotten what I was going to discuss. But other than Translinear Light the records mentioned above were made before 1970. Where has jazz gone to now? Either backwards, completely underground, or at a restaurant. If you happen to stumble across a jazz night in town, chances are you'll hear a trumpeter sounding like early Miles Davis, a saxophonist more like Charlie Parker than Coleman, and a drummer still going 'tss-t-t-tss-t-t-tss'. Jazz used to be a vehicle for social change, musical experimentation, total liberation. I'd much rather hear a quartet just hitting their highest and lowest notes for 12 minutes straight than another tame rendition of 'So What'. Groups like this are the equivalent of Led Zeppelin tribute acts to me.

Maybe I'm being unfair, that free jazz is irrelevant now, much like serialism doesn't count for much in contemporary classical music now.

The problem I've found is that the majority define jazz as 'that' sound. the late night smokey bars with the continuous swung beat, the continuous walking bass hitting the 4th up or 5th down every bar, and the 7th chord, whilst a slightly overindulgent but nevertheless talented horn player switches from the head to whizzing up and down the dorian scale. For me, jazz always felt good as a spiritual thing. I'm not religious in any way, but jazz can have the power to transcend because of it's natural groove, it's just a shame that this groove seems more like a train-track and less like an ascending force.

What to do then? Jazz musicians shouldn't be so incestuous for one. I see the same musicians playing in each other's quartets, probably due to their thoughts that there aren't enough good musicians who 'get it'. Conversely, they don't 'get' other genres, yes, perhaps rock music is less virtuosic and requires less talent, but have they considered that other styles of music now have much more heart than modal worship? Jazz as we know it now has very little heart.

Bands like Polar Bear, Led Bib, OutHouse and Acoustic Ladyland are all very good bands, do they give off much emotion? not really, instead it sounds like nothing more than Sixth Form cleverness. You could argue that it's just harder to understand emotion without tangibility, as in lyrics, but go see post-rock bands like Mono and Sigur Ros (most songs have lyrics, yes, but how devastating was ( )?)

Jazz groups that do have feel, hmmm... I enjoyed Robert Mitchell 3io, really nice stuff, but again meandered a little too often. Perhaps we just need to look at jazz-inspired artists

First that comes to mind is Mos Def, having just gotten hold of The Ecstatic it does feel a little long, but songs like 'History' 'Life in Marvelous Times' are truly inspired. The music of Mos Def, along with Q-Tip, the Roots and Taleb Kweli are forever indebted to the true soul found in jazz. Dirty Projectors, a band continually accused of being too brainy for their own good have also a jazz vibe, yes they work in slightly strange time signatures, extend harmonic vocabulary and their melody lines are often outlandish, but there is always a danceable groove in their music. Does that sound familiar to hard-bop and experimental jazz? Their bass player Nat Baldwin studied under Anthony Braxton (Father of Battles' Tyondai, more importantly one of the biggest names in avant garde jazz) and it's more than notable in his music. Baldwin's songs evoke, rather than ape a swing groove thanks to it's backbeat chord changes and skittering drum lines. On the note of drummers, it's vital to pay attention to Grizzly Bear's Christopher Bear, one of the most inventive drummers in contemporary mainstream music.

Finally, let's go full circle back to Alice Coltrane, in a way. Recently I've come across Glass Ghost, a New York duo that somehow to me manage to evoke both Krautrock and jazz at the same time. Their drum beats are mechanical for durations of their songs, to explode into improvisations that float and crash all around. Keyboardist Eliot Krimsky's chords similarly float beautifully, much like Coltrane's Wurlitzer organ, constantly but inconspicuously drifting between Debussyian wholetone flutters and blue-note leanings. Seriously check it out.

Here's a concise list of name checks:

John Coltrane: Ascension

John Coltrane + Rashied Ali: Meditations

Ahmad Jamal 'The Creator has a Master Plan'

Alice Coltrane: Journey to Satchidananda and Translinear Light

Sigur Ros: ( )

Robert Mitchell 3io: The Greater Good

Mos Def: The Ecstatic

Dirty Projectors: The Getty Address, Bitte Orca

Nat Baldwin: Most Valuable Player

Grizzly Bear: Veckatimest

Glass Ghost: Idol Omen

Scott Walker: that was then, this is now

The first time I heard Scott Walker was not through Burt Bacharach's music. At least not consciously, although when hearing 'Make it Easy on Yourself' on compilations and collections I then put two and two together and became slightly more fascinated by the 60's crooner. To celebrate the launch of 4AD's new compilation '1980 Forward' in 2005 I went to see Blonde Redhead with Jóhann Jóhannsson with a trailer dividing the two acts. It was of '30 Century Man', the definitive biopic about Scott Walker's life post-Walker Brothers. As soon as I came home I went looking to listen to The Drift. As much as I was curious, I couldn't handle it. The first track 'Cossacks Are' pounded at my head with its incessant off-kilter drum beat and it was brilliant to hear this man, late fifties into his sixties, producing something so heavy, but not in a way I had experienced before. The rest of the album was a blur of dissonant strings, meat pounding and Walker's tender, slightly brittle voice that insisted on laying the most beautifully contoured vocal melodies over jarring instrumentation.

Since my first encounter in 2005 I've started from the beginning with the Walker Brothers, become a fan of 'Scott 4' and now find myself engrossed in his last two major albums, Tilt and, once again The Drift. In the whole scheme of Walker's career, both albums are fairly similar to each other, especially considering Scott 1 to 4 is particularly informed by Bacharach and Jacques Brel. On these two albums the soundworld is a complete new ballgame, Walker doesn't really write songs, not in the way a pop musician is expected to. It could be said that the music serves the lyrics, even poems, that accompany it, detailing each actions found in each line. Take for example 'Clara', detailing the public exhibition of the Mussolini's corpse along with his mistress, Claretta Petacci, where a slab of meat is used to represent the public beating the lifeless bodies as they left strung up by their feet in the street. Not exactly top 40 material.

Lyrically, Scott Walker isn't far off from his previous efforts. Found on Scott 4 are homages to many influences on his work, such as Ingmar Bergman, Albert Camus, and a letter to the 'old man', Josef Stalin. But the change of musical direction in Scott Walker is brutal, having personally been a sufferer of reoccurring nightmares. Only now, having full licence over his work since 1995 has he been able to manifest music so haunting. And haunting is not to be taken lightly. I once listened to Tilt on headphones from beginning to end at a decent volume and could not do anything but pay full attention to each small detail found in every song, the ticking cogs, the distant militaric thumping, the orchestration that at times creeps up on you, at times threatens a heart attack. That reverb soaked voice. Respite is found occasionally halfway through songs, perhaps most interventional being 5 minutes into 'Bouncer See Bouncer...'.

What draws me to the works of Scott Walker is his unashamed ability to make his music overly dramatic, and isn't afraid of sounding a little ridiculous. And his music is all the better for it. It is hard to do the music justice without actually hearing it, solely because it is the most idiosyncratic of works by someone considered to be a pop songwriter, in so far as it has almost nothing to do with pop music, and bears little resemblance to anything, even his own music preceding (except perhaps 'Boy Child' from Scott 4). Hearing the last of his orchestral pop records then straight into his newer works may have you questioning his sanity. His records are perhaps insane, but what is the problem in that? We as a society indulge in films and art unbelievably twisted, The Drift is merely another exploration into the darker side of music. Luckily for Walker, he stands on a pedestal above avant garde artists due to his fame beforehand. And if you're a fan of The Drift and Tilt then perhaps you'll want to venture further down the modernist orchestral genre, moments of George Crumb's 'Black Angels' come through, As well as sections of Eastern European chamber orchestral scores (Penderecki and Shostakovich come to mind immediately, I'm no expert, though). Then of course you have Walker's near operatic voice, but in so far as the melody and the open-voweled stretches, not in terms of gymnsatic melismas.

The only real way to experience it is to hear it.

'Boy Child' from Scott 4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVPCivE7JsA

'Bouncer See Bouncer' from Tilt http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnY18mxoqs8

'Jesse' from The Drift http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYyOkQUyJZM

Beethoven's Fidelio: trying to tackle opera last night

I think I'm studying opera next year. I really don't like opera, generally music full of orchestration that is supportive of a fairly weak libretto with opera singers more concerned with sounding loud and pure than portraying the characters through vocal characterisations. But I'm determined to like it, so I decided to sit down for a couple of hours before Match of the Day and pay attention to Beethoven's only operatic work Fidelio. It's meant to be a great piece about Love and the struggle for Peace. Here's the briefest synopsis I could find quickly:

"Set in a Spanish prison, near Seville, Fidelio , otherwise Leonore, oder Der Triumph der ehelichen Liebe (Leonora, or The Triumph of Married Love), centres on the loyalty and love of Leonora, who disguises herself as a boy, Fidelio, and takes service under the gaoler Rocco, discovering in the deepest dungeon her husband, Florestan. Don Pizarro, who holds Florestan prisoner for personal reasons, orders his secret murder, which Leonora is able to prevent as the arrival of the minister Don Fernando is announced, an event that will put all to rights again. Additional complications for Leonora include the unwanted affection for her of Marzelline, who is unaware of her true identity, and the consequent rivalry of Jaquino. Rocco, a good man who obeys orders, however unjust, may be seen as a representative figure, while the prisoners in his charge have their moment in the famous prisoners' chorus that allows them to emerge for a moment into the fresher air. " (http://www.naxos.com/education/opera_libretti.asp?pn=&char=ALL&composer=Beethoven&opera=Fidelio&libretto_file=English/00_Synopsis.htm)

Did I get any of that last night? In a word, no. Instead I got a full orchestra onstage, not in a pit, strange recitative moments in the house PA that attempted to keep me abreast with what's just happened, and a group of singers who don't act, or even put on costume to get into character. Just a group of talented singers who are somewhat less talented in portraying emotion through facial expression. I feel quite sorry for the paying audience who weren't treated to the television closeups of the emotions on the faces of the singers.

Okay, so the storyline got the best of me, so how about the music. The introduction was grand, as you'd expect in any Beethoven piece for large ensembles, but there was little in the way of memorable melodies. There was little sense of Stürm und Drang or emotional stirring, just grandeur. I don't really remember any of it, to be honest. The singers were impressive, of course, the ability to project a voice, regardless of microphone aid, is definitely something to admire. But again, it lacked emotion, and it doesn't help when the libretto is repeated over and over again just for the singers to do a bit of vocal gymnastics. My dad who was watching it with me, less clued up than my measly knowledge of opera but with an infinitely stronger grasp of German, was worried about the pronunciation of words. Later during the interval it was all cleared up, they voiced the libretto in a more Wagnerian style. So the audience neither received the proper contemporary way the libretto would have been sung, nor a modern portrayal of german pronunciation.

To briefly summarise, it was all very disappointing, leaving me to continually eye up the remote control to find something else that was at least more gratifying in the short term, like 'How clean is your house?'. I do think the BBC are moving in the right direction in the programming for arts outside of BBC4. Definitely not a fan of 'Classic Goldie' though.

It got me thinking 'where does leave me, how am I meant to like any opera if I can't be enthused by Beethoven?'. I think upon reflection I blame a poor performance rather than the actual music itself, perhaps I'd be more into it if I were in the audience with the opera providing more onstage action, but the BBC simply did not take that into consideration, and that's where the performance fell flat.

Maybe if I tried modern opera I'd fare better. Hopefully addressing subjects in the libretto that mattered more to society today, or something. Also, if Opera singers stopped singing in such a Wagnerian style, that'd be good. In fact, all singers in art music should just sing with their own accents, but that's another topic that I won't go into now.

To watch on BBC iPlayer: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00mcvxs/BBC_Proms_2009_Prom_50_Beethovens_Fidelio

Why write?

For quite some time I've had a feeling that it seems quite strange to write a blog. There are probably thousands going on millions of people writing their thoughts on the internet, most likely getting less than 10 hits a year outside of friends and family. It's not often a blog turns into an international sensation without the blogger being famous beforehand (unless you're gonna post exclusive pictures and scoops of celebrities doing things that are similar to what non-celebrities do, something I hope to be pursuing when I've given up living a decent life).

Okay, so before the why I'll start with the what. I'm about to enter my third, and probably final year of university studying Music, both classical and popular. Over the past couple years my perspective on music has changed drastically, or possibly fluctuated from one idea to another and back again several times. I've also started writing concert reviews for the Merseyside Post, Brickface Press, Liverpool and a blog that lasted a couple weeks last year with some course friends, as well as preparing an essay for Love Without Care Press, Newcastle. Alongside that I've started promoting bands and have just been offered an internship at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall.

So I'll be writing about stuff that has just come across my mind whenever it pops up in seperate categories:

• New artist spotlight: Musicians and bands that I think are relevant to current music, that I think/hope is the future of popular and art music, stuff which I feel needs to be discovered. If you already know an artist I'm talking about then power to you, get in touch with me and tell me more.
• Old artist spotlight: Musicians and bands that I've yet to discover or am rediscovering, how it relates to music now if it even does. Pretty much the same as above
• Rants and Discourse: Mostly regarding thoughts on how the musical world works, what I'm currently pleased or angry about. Basically my points of view, no matter how skewed and biased.
• Personal Canons: Music I already know about and personally revere. I'll try not to go on about people like Black Flag and Springsteen as most music fans have probably heard enough to make their own mind up.
• How my taste came to be: Probably the most egotistical of subjects, but I'll probably enjoy it a lot more than you, the reader, will. I'll write about stuff that I was into when I was younger, how it changed my perspective of music and the industry
• Lists: you get the idea
• Anything else?: If it doesn't fit in the categories above, then this is my miscellaneous pile. I might even not talk about music here.

I'll also be posting album reviews, gig reviews and listings for happenings in Liverpool.

So now onto the why. As I've just begun writing for other reasons than to get a degree I've thought it important to have one place to collect my ideas as raw as possible, so I can look back and see how my views evolve as they will inevitably form the make-up of proper published articles in the future. I also hope to look through this blog chronologically and see how my writing style changes, and also just to wonder why I said such things. Obviously in any public forum one's views are likely to be watered-down, so perhaps I'll get good practice in just writing. Most importantly I hope the blog will encourage me, as well as you, the reader, to seek out new music, stuff that I wouldn't immediately go for, try to empathise with different bands and genres, and be able to manifest my viewpoints on how music should be made and how the industry should be run.

So, all there is to say is that I hope you bookmark this and you'll enjoy reading as much as I'll enjoy writing.