MICHAEL TRENI BIG BAND
"Pop-Culture Blues"
Muscular
big band punch fills this new release, a collection of 10 expressive
tracks written and arranged by Michael Treni. The shortest is the title
track at 4:20 minutes. The longest is "Blues in Triplicate" expressing
itself for nine minutes and four seconds.
What
makes these generous recording times so nice is that even after the
horn sections have flexed their chops on some convincing section work,
all the soloists still receive a spacious showcase and a propulsive beat
to ride like an old school surfer hanging ten on a very big board.
And because each track has "blues" in the title, you know exactly what to expect.
The
only exception is the lead track "One for Duke" -- still the blues, but
with a little more symphonic treatment. Especially tasty are the
multiple tenor solos by Jerry Bergonzi.
Lengthy
liner notes describe this recording as a "suite in 10 parts that
presents the development of the blues within the jazz idiom by utilizing
the changing compositional styles prevalent from the late 1950s to
today."
But
don't be frightened. Every one of these 10 parts is a vigorous
rendering of its theme and variations. Nobody agonizes in atonal chaos
or goes asperger on us, repeating the same chromatic sequence over and
over.
These are big city blues and Treni goes for the beef every time. Toast him with a properly chilled martini.
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