Pianist
Nick Sanders christened his second CD, You Are a Creature, with a
head-scratcher of a title, but his virtuosity and vision couldn't be more clear
on the music within. Throughout the album's concise but idea-packed thirteen
tracks, Sanders continues to hone and evolve his distinctive voice as an
instrumentalist and composer as well as the unique collective identity of his
trio with bassist Henry Fraser and drummer Connor Baker. Due out February 17 on
Sunnyside Records, You Are a Creature offers further evidence of a major new
voice on the modern jazz scene.
As for that
title and the attention-grabbing cover image of a sideshow-poster
contortionist, both ultimately relate to Sanders' original perspective on human
nature, an ability to see everyday behavior from a fresh angle that comes
through in the often-surprising twists and turns of his music. "A lot of
times I'll just look at someone and realize that some of the things that we do
are so strange," he explains. "And the music is very reflective of
those different experiences that people go through in their lives. I think that
life in and of itself can be like a sideshow."
Sanders'
individual approach and the strikingly singular language developed by the trio
have commanded the attention of no less discerning a stylist than pianist Fred
Hersch, who not only encouraged Sanders to record his 2013 debut, Nameless
Neighbors, but offered his services as the album's producer. Hersch returned to
that role on You Are a Creature, offering insightful direction but also upping
everyone's game simply by his commanding presence in the studio.
"When
you know that Fred Hersch is watching and listening to everything you're doing,
you have a tendency to deliver at your utmost capabilities," Sanders
describes. "But the best thing about it is just having someone so
knowledgeable, who has been in the game for so long, there to give you
feedback. It's huge, to know that there's someone with great ears who has my
back. He really understands my music and had a lot of interesting arrangement
ideas, which we could take or leave without any judgment on his part. There was
no ego. We work really well together."
It
helped immeasurably that Sanders brought such a wealth of material into the
studio with him. The tunes can all be traced back to personal experiences and
relationships in the pianist's life, which imbue the complex and multi-faceted
compositions with a strong emotional core. From the insistent and aptly-named
opener, "Let's Start," through the dissonant musings of
"Wheelchair" and the off-kilter carousel of "Round You Go,"
to the stark, shimmering lurch of "Day Zombie," each piece is
memorable and intricately constructed while allowing for an intimate and
spontaneous three-way conversation among the trio, all within the relatively
tight constraints of pieces that rarely exceed the five-and-a-half minute mark.
"In
this day and age, people's attention spans aren't very long," Sanders
says. "Because it's a trio, it's really more about interacting and having
a group sound as opposed to just having people soloing. It also allows me to
show different aspects of my compositional worldview."
That
worldview was honed by a number of foundational influences, none of which are
overpoweringly obvious but each of which has contributed to Sanders'
one-of-a-kind sound. There's his hometown, New Orleans, with its rich jazz
heritage; there's his training in classical music; his upbringing hearing and
singing hymns in church; the musical influence of his drummer father and the
presence of Latin music via his Cuban mother; and his studies with some of modern
jazz's most renowned artists, including Fred Hersch, Jason Moran, Alvin
Batiste, and Danilo Pérez. A final, more unusual, influence that Sanders cites,
one reflective of his generation, is that of video games. While video games may
not seem to have much to do with jazz piano beyond the use of hand-eye
coordination, their combination of the cinematic and the interactive is
immediately evocative of Sanders' music.
All of
those influences converged when Sanders joined with Fraser and Baker while all
three were students at the New England Conservatory, where Sanders completed
his Master's degree in 2012. The trio quickly realized that they possessed a
special alchemy together, one that was soon recognized by listeners. You Are a
Creature showcases their continued maturation, offering a carnival's worth of
delights and surprises.
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