Upcoming Hurricane is a new group in a traditional form, a particular concatenation of musicians that gelled with remarkable speed and which brings its own strong personality to the idea of the piano trio. It has a layered rhythmic dynamism that comes directly from the tradition and the exploding, unfettered energy of free improvisation. It was the young bassist Pascal Niggenkemper’s idea to put together this band with the brilliant veterans Simon Nabatov and Gerald Cleaver, and it’s a sign of both Niggenkemper’s skills and his prescience that the group possesses the depth, vitality and vision that it does. Stuart Broomer
Pascal Niggenkemper, Simon Nabatov and Gerald Cleaver “Upcoming Hurricane” is also available on CD
Side A
Side B
NoBusiness Records NBLP40, 2011, limited edition of 300 records
Recorded on March 16, 2010 by Christian Heck at Loft in Kцln Mixed on October 30, 2010 by Christian Heck at Tonart Studio in Kerpen-Horrem Mastered on December 29, 2010 by Jim Clouse at Park West Studios in Brooklyn Design by Oskaras Anosovas Producer – Danas Mikailionis Co-producer – Valerij Anosov
This recording is dedicated to Patricia Boulet
The impressive Lithuanian label No Business also shared some terrific Hemphill music last year, releasing a double CD called Live at Kassiopeia that features solos and duets by Hemphill and great German bassist Peter Kowald. It was recorded live in 1987 in Wuppertal, Germany (the bassist's hometown), and it's all totally improvised. The two players interact with an easy rapport—few European free-jazz musicians worked more extensively and naturally with their American counterparts than Kowald, and Hemphill was among the most open-minded figures to emerge from the 70s jazz scene—even as their slightly different approaches create a nice tension. Kowald doesn't use repetition like Wadud does, preferring a more muscular and propulsive style a la William Parker, and Hemphill adapts with a rangier kind of playing. Live at Kassiopeia captures a side of Hemphill that his studio work rarely explored at such length—the centerpiece of disc two is a single cut that runs more than 36 minutes.
