Search - Gateway, John Abercrombie, Dave Holland :: In the Moment

In the Moment
Gateway, John Abercrombie, Dave Holland
In the Moment
Genres: Jazz, Pop
 
  •  Track Listings (5) - Disc #1

Along with Homecoming, this 1994 recording was part of the second coming of the Gateway trio, guitarist John Abercrombie, bassist Dave Holland, and drummer Jack DeJohnette, reforming the stellar trio that hadn't been in th...  more »

     

CD Details

All Artists: Gateway, John Abercrombie, Dave Holland, Jack Dejohnette
Title: In the Moment
Members Wishing: 4
Total Copies: 0
Label: ECM Records
Release Date: 9/17/1996
Genres: Jazz, Pop
Style:
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
UPC: 781182157422

Synopsis

Amazon.com
Along with Homecoming, this 1994 recording was part of the second coming of the Gateway trio, guitarist John Abercrombie, bassist Dave Holland, and drummer Jack DeJohnette, reforming the stellar trio that hadn't been in the studios since Gateway 2 in 1977. Unlike Homecoming and their two albums from the '70s, however, In the Moment is devoted entirely to collective improvisations rather than composed themes. It puts the emphasis even more solidly on modal improvisation than usual, which is especially apparent in the opening track, with its strong evocation of Indian music in the continuous drone and the sitarlike sound of Abercrombie's guitar. That moving sense of geography is evident, too, in the Middle Eastern feel of "Cimucen," with its pulsing rhythm and sustained, keening guitar sound. Each member of the trio is responsible for beginning one of these group explorations, and DeJohnette turns from drums to piano to initiate the mood of limpid beauty that spreads through the Japanese tonalities of "Soft." Holland's deep-toned bowed bass establishes the specific gravity of "The Enchanted Forest." His pizzicato playing similarly initiates "Shrubberies," but it rapidly turns into a dialogue with Abercrombie that eventually becomes a feature for the guitarist's cascading, heavily distorted lines. There are shades of the 1970s in both the geographical wanderings and some of the guitar sounds heard here, but the level of collective interaction, a hallmark of this group, is very high. --Stuart Broomer

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CD Reviews

How could it not be AMAZING???
Lord Chimp | Monkey World | 01/13/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)

"My favorite jazz guitarist (John Abercrombie), my favorite jazz double-bassist (Dave Holland), and my favorite jazz drummer (Jack DeJohnette) on an album that is a worldly free jazz landscape crafted by preternatural interplay and evocative musical dialogue. So yea...how could this not be amazing?That's enough for me, but perhaps not enough information for other people. And since no one has reviewed this yet I might as well put a little more effort into this. The music is improvised and explores a schema of Eastern and Middle Eastern musical sounds. Sonically it lives up to ECM's very high standards, and most important of all, the sound and playing of this ensemble is breathtaking. "In the Moment" has a disorienting rhythm and east Indian flavor (DeJohnette on Turkish frame drum!) and Turko-Persian guitar lines, but with Abercrombie's silky distortion. Holland nourishes the advance of an improvisational arc that almost seems to be in stasis otherwise, giving the barely noticed momentum of the picturesque piece added exigency and provision. If you could eat it, it would be delicious. Abercrombie's brooding ruminations in the early portion of "Shrubberies" are punctuated by Holland's suggestive pizzicatos and DeJohnette's jingling percussion. The rhythm reforms a little more tightly and becomes more impelling, as the guitar grows more urgent. A brief interlude of liquid sustained guitar hemorrhages into a tumultuous guitar performance with power at once great and delicate. "The Enchanted Forest" sounds how you might think given the title, opening with bowed bass connoting dark, shadowy woods with mischievous forest gnomes causing trouble. DeJohnette's drumming is more insinuating than directly percussive, and the interlacing strokes of bass and guitar grow more tangled and mysterious . . . like moving deeper in to the "forest." The climax during the 7-8 minute point is a biting pointillist tapesty (like haggard branches clawing at the skin) then it disappears into the shadows. "Cinucen" has gorgeous floating guitar sounds, a distinctively melodic and evocative bass anchor that could be no one but Dave Holland, and an earthy, subtly undulating rhythm. "Soft" begins with atmospheric shimmers of DeJohnette on piano, followed by Holland's mournful bowed bass. It carries forward into a beautiful, ethereal piece with Eastern undertones with unparalleled interaction: Holland's bass holds down Abercrombie's somber notes, while sparse, floating piano fills in the gaps. Needless to say, this is outstanding stuff. I guess I'm going to have to get all the other albums with this ensemble now."