Fire In The West
Cellar, 2022
8/10
The exceptional Canadian bassist and composer Neil Swainson brings us a quintet effort that takes his past as a side musician for Woody Shaw, George Shearing and Roberta Gambarini into account for this sonically luminous jazz experience.
The title track starts the listen with bright brass, frisky drums and a dynamic, timeless jazz energy that makes an impressive introduction, and “Fool’s Gold” follows with a cautious approach that benefits much from the graceful piano amid a reflective tone.
The setting moves quite soulfully with the middle tracks, where “Kyushu” beams with radiant horns amid the playful drumming, while “Late Afternoon” allows the graceful piano to shine as both calm and more firm moments are present.
Nearing the end, “Gone Away” emits a very intimate demeanor that’s accented by gentle brass and burns slow with much emotion, and “Silver Mine” exits the listen upbeat, festive and with glowing melodies as all players contribute their respective strengths in spades.
This is actually Swainson’s sophomore album after a 35 year hiatus as band leader, and with Renee Rosnes (piano), Lewis Nash (drums), Brad Turner (trumpet) and Kelly Jefferson (tenor sax) in attendance, he makes for plenty of post-bop and rhythmic song craft that’s quite memorable.
Travels well with: Billy Drummond And Freedom Of Ideas- Valse Sinistre; Aaron Seeber- First Move