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Shock Value captures trumpeter Jeremy Pelt JER and his electric
band, WiRED live at the Manhattan club Smoke. The performance is evidence
that Pelt is finding his own voice as a trumpet player and a composer,
as he navigates a variety of sub-categories of electric jazz.
WiRED features a strong set of players to realize and bolster
Pelt’s vision. Frank Locrasto plays Fender Rhodes, Hammond B3, and
a variety of other keyboards and effects. Al Street is a scrappy, pugnacious
electric guitarist who can be atmospheric or just shred the place, depending
on what’s called for in any particular number. Gavin Fallow and
Dana Hawkins, on bass and drums respectively, create a high energy level,
but still manage to move lightly and quickly. At times, such as during
Locrasto’s Fender solo on “Suspicion,” the group sounds
a bit like Chick Corea’s original Return to Forever group.
Because of the way the group plays at times, and also because
Pelt feeds his trumpet and flugelhorn work through a variety of electronic
effects, there will inevitabley be comparisons of this work with Miles
Davis’ electronic groups, particularly the transitional group that
featured Corea along with Keith Jarrett. First, it’s encouraging
that younger musicians today are interested in exploring these kinds of
sounds and musical ideas, because there were many avenues suggested by
some of the original fusion bands that were never adequately explored.
Second, Miles was really the only musician who stuck by what he was doing
with his electronic music and didn’t revert to an earlier sound
after a short period. Further, he didn’t treat the electronics as
a gimmick the way that many did at the time. So, any musician who is serious
about creating improvisational jazz with electronic imstruments and effects
will go through Miles. But musicians like Pelt, who grew up in the 80s
and 90s grew up listening to a lot of other stuff as well, including hip-hop,
rock, and various forms of electronica. They blend ideas from all of these
sources, not simply from jazz sources.
The opening “Circular,” an arresting repeated
line in the manner of Wayne Shorter’s “Nefertiti” allows
for some hot solos from Pelt and Street. The group then launches into
a raunchy blues that is gritty and authentic. Pelt, playing through effects,
is all about playing the blues, and not about how many notes or what substitute
changes he can run against the blues, as some jazz musicians would be.
The same can be said of Street’s exemplary guitar solo. Locrasto
plays some tasty Hammond B3 on this one, further adding to the late night
lounge vibe.
Vocalist Becca Stevens joins the band for the hypnotic
“Cause,” the sound of her voice more like another instrument
to interact with Pelt than conveying meaning through lyrics. Two more
Pelt originals, “Pythagorus” and “Scorpio” round
out the performance, balanced by the ethereal ballad “Beyond,”
which was composed by Derek Nievergelt. Listening to Pelt’s solo
on “Pythagorus” one can’t help but notice the way he
swings and bristles with splashes of bop playing. It certainly supports
Pelt’s contention, in his liner notes, that perhaps we ought to
give up the notion of placing music into discreet categories. When the
results are as tasty and well-executed as Shock Value, I’m
all for that.
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