a r t i s t : Peter Epstein - Brad Shepik - Matt Kilmer
t i t l e : Lingua Franca
d a t e : 2005
l a b e l : Songlines
g e n r e : Jazz
r l s. d a t e : Jul/2007
t r a c k s : 10
b i t r a t e : VBRkbps
s i z e : 76,7 MB
_______________________________________________________________________
Peter Epstein, alto & soprano saxophones,
Brad Shepik, guitar,
Matt Kilmer, percussions
The music we call jazz, broad and ill-defined category,
embraces a wide array of sounds. Under the jazz umbrella you
find bebop to electronica, ambient to power trio, turntablism
to tablas, ferocious saxophones to Balkan folk music. That's a
big part of the music's appeal. The art form is not static; it
evolves and incorporates everything it hears, and it moves in
a million different directions.
Lingua Franca, by saxophonist Peter Epstein, guitarist Brad
Shepik, and percussionist Matt Kilmer, is an excellent example
of the incorporation of exotic styles. The odd
configurationùreed, guitar, drumsùin and of itself makes for
an unusual sound, and the three musicians bring in a bunch of
world music influences, creating a sort of folk song
underpinning to reggae (Sunrise), blues (Miro), and Celtic
(Emerald), along with an unidentifiable amalgam of Eastern and
Eastern European modes.
The disc opens with Two Door, which has a lively high-octane
feeling, with Matt Kilmer using a kanjira (a small Indian folk
drum) behind an insistent cruise control momentum of
alternating guitar/sax solos. Miro brings in a bluesy tint,
Shepik exotically soulful; Kilmer wields a frame drum with a
brush in one hand, adding an odd yet intriguing bump and
shuffle backdrop.
Percussion seems the area of music-making most wide open to
creativity, and Matt Kilmer's makes fascinating contributions
throughout the set on a variety of frame drums: djembe, ocean
drum, kanjira. On Emerald, one large frame drum with a deep,
hollow resonance elevates the song's Celtic mysticism, while
the percussionist's hadgini, a type of Udu drum, adds a
succinct yet subtle punctuation behind the amorphous, drifting
melody on Improvisation I.
Recorded mostly live with no overdubs, Lingua Franca has a
very organic, spontaneous feeling, sometimes lively, sometimes
meditative, always entrancing. One of the most interesting
discs of the year.
All about jazz
_______________________________________________________________________
01-two door (Brad Shepik) [07:16]
02-miro (Peter Epstein) [04:55]
03-emerald (Brad Shepik) [03:48]
04-temoin (Brad Shepik) [04:24]
05-here & there (Peter Epstein) [06:36]
06-monsaraz (Peter Epstein) [09:36]
07-kumanuvo (Brad Shepik) [05:17]
08-sunrise (Brad Shepik) [05:10]
09-meditation (Peter Epstein) [09:35]
10-improvisation 1 [07:34]
-------
64:11 min