The origins of this debut Whirlwind release as a leader,
from acclaimed saxophonist and composer, and founding member of The New York
Standards Quartet (who's sixth album, Sleight Of Hand is out now on Whirlwind)
Tim Armacost, tell a fascinating tale. A marquee player on the New York City
and Japanese scenes for many years, with an extensive discography and countless
live and recorded collaborations to his name in the US, Europe and Asia, the
clear direction for Time Being arrived, remarkably, out of the blue.
As Armacost elaborates: "I pictured myself, like a
scene from a movie, playing Ornette Coleman's 'Lonely Woman' in the studio with
a trio - double bassist Robert Hurst and drummer Jeff "Tain" Watts.
Tain was, in terms of time signature, out on his own, and Bob and I were
communicating with each other independently of what he was playing. But what
Tain was doing was so incredibly attractive - so eerie and so beautiful - that
we both really wanted to go over and be part of that; yet we already had this
melody that we had to play together. That whole idea led to these explorations
of creating tension by playing in parallel spaces, and then releasing the
tension into a beautifully swinging groove by allowing the parallel spaces to
merge. It was something I'd never tried before, and the concept was really
exciting. We decided to record in Tain's studio, in an intimate live
environment with no separation." "So for my compositions and
arrangements, I needed to imagine the ideas happening in real time; and
fortunately, with Tain and Bob on board - some of the most swinging musicians
on the planet - there was a great willingness for exploration, to make it
happen." Joining the trio on selected tracks is pianist David Kikoski,
providing elegant, rippling color to numbers such as "The Next 20"
and "One and Four."
Through the dedication of these accomplished artists, this
concept evolved into a project that is organic, exploratory and swinging. The
three 'Sculptures' on the album are very much an expression of this structured
experimentation. "Phase Shift" is modeled on an 'X' formation, as
Armacost and Watts converge along the left tempo pathways with Hurst on the
right until saxophonist and bassist change places - technical in construction,
but an exhilarating listen. On "Tempus Funkit," Armacost
independently visits the rhythms of Tain and Hurst; and the particle-like
conflict of "All The Things You Could Become In The Large Hadron
Collider" (based on "All The Things You Are") is also a playful
reference to Charles Mingus', "All The Things You Could Be By Now If
Sigmund Freud's Wife Was Your Mother".
"Lonely Woman" - the seed of this album that
engendered so many possibilities, features a call-and-response between tenor
and bass, initiating their own improvisations until the drums home in on the
bassist. So the differing musical tensions are intentionally part of the
unplanned dialogue present throughout this recording. On the title track,
"Time Being," the trio divides when Armacost moves to a different
tempo, with Hurst following, and Watts reaching them later - as Armacost
enthuses: "When we all come back together, the pay-off is really
delicious!" "53rd Street" is inspired by the blues melody of
Thelonious Monk's "52nd Street"; there's a fine, percussively buoyant
interpretation of Monk's "Teo"; and the feisty, original composition
"Alawain" says so much about this trio's collective, impassioned
spirit.
Tim Armacost describes the session as being playful, wild
and serious: "It has been a real source of joy for me to see such open
musicians willing to make an attempt at something we've never done before; and
especially when things got kind of interesting, and we started smiling - that
was a really special, even relaxed experience. I hope that, although this has a
demanding concept at its roots, listeners can pick up on its lyrical, singing
qualities. The audience is very much part of the conversation - we're doing
this thing together, and we invite you in to have fun!"
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