Blare Blow Bloom!
Irritable Mystic, 2024
8/10
An all star assembly of Ben Zucker, Molly Jones, Josh Harlow and band leader Adam Shead, as Microplastique they flesh out an unpredictable jazz setting using their multi-instrumental ways.
“Blare” opens with Shead’s rapid fire drumming before playful keys and dizzying sax thanks to Jones enters the rowdy delivery, and “Blow” follows with strong attention to percussion amid a dizzying, free jazz climate.
“Bloom!” arrives at the halfway point and makes great use of the dreamy flute, where intimacy and exploration blend atypically, while “Walk On Kedzie” carries a child like demeanor alongside the soft wind and a mesmerizing spirit.
Landing near the end, “Bells For Four” uses strategic repetition via the skilled percussion, and “March For MRA” exits with Zucker’s well timed harmonica and a ‘found objects’ sort of appeal that’s artistic and unconventional.
An effort that uses so many noisemakers to its advantage, all the selections were captured live and showcase tremendous improvisation and avant-garde jazz adventurousness.
Travels well with: Stein/Smith/Shead- Volumes & Surfaces; Stein/Smith/Shead- Hum