Grdina’s remarkable streak continues this summer with a pair of new releases featuring some of the most revered improvisers in modern jazz and creative music; both find Grdina reconvening exploratory trios that expand upon the discoveries of their respective debuts. On June 17, 2022 the Astral Spirits label will release Boiling Point, the much-anticipated sophomore outing by Grdina’s explosive Nomad Trio with pianist Matt Mitchell and drummer Jim Black; while Attaboygirl will release Pathways, the second meeting of Grdina with legendary pianist Matthew Shipp and bass innovator Mark Helias.
The self-titled 2020 debut of Grdina’s Nomad Trio was hailed by PopMatters for setting up “loose structures for wild improvising [while also including] a healthy menu of hot unison licks and fleet melodies.” Something Else! lauded the trio’s ability to “wander without a clear map through vast musical terrain few can even attempt, and make it to the other side unscathed.” Those accolades are unsurprising since Grdina enlisted two of the most inventive and technically versatile artists in modern music for this trio.
Matt Mitchell has established himself as one of the most audacious, in-demand pianists on the New York scene, forging significant relationships with the likes of Tim Berne, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Dave Douglas, Dan Weiss and John Hollenbeck. Jim Black, meanwhile, is famed as the propulsive, rock- and electronica-inspired drummer behind such influential bands as Berne’s Bloodcount, Human Feel and AlasNoAxis, while working extensively with such artists as Dave Douglas, Uri Caine, Carlos Bica, Ellery Eskelin, Hilmar Jensson, Chris Speed and Satoko Fujii.
“I can write anything for this band,” Grdina says. “It's very complex music, rhythmically, harmonically, melodically, and in the way every piece fits together. Those guys really can do anything. Since the last album, the group has solidified its unique sound, which is exciting to hear develop on this second record.”
The trio of Grdina, Matthew Shipp and Mark Helias is equally bold while venturing into less ferocious terrain. Pathways quickly reveals the trio’s collective evolution since 2019’s initial meeting, Skin and Bones. Where only two of that album’s seven tracks clocked in under ten minutes, the nine pieces on Pathways never exceed the ten-minute mark and rarely even approach it. The results are tightly coiled and laser focused, with abundant ideas packed into concentrated, intense bursts of creative energy.
Surprisingly given their extensive histories, Helias and Shipp had never played together prior to the West Coast tour leading up the recording of Skin and Bones, though they both lived in the East Village and would often discuss boxing, a shared passion. Counting on that casual familiarity (not to mention their estimable imaginations) to spark on the bandstand, Grdina invited the two to join him and discovered an instant chemistry.
“For this second album we met at East Side Sound three years later and picked up right where we left off,” Grdina notes. “This album is much different than the first, with each piece more concisely presenting the musical ideas and interconnectedness of the group. There are many times when I can't tell what is piano and what is guitar or bass, as the roles shift and instruments blend together to create something collective. I love when that happens and you lose yourself and become something bigger.”
Seeking a new outlet that can keep pace with his ever-expanding roster of ongoing projects and new collaborations, Grdina launched Attaboygirl Records in October 2021. The endeavor was undertaken in collaboration with his partner, photographer Genevieve Monro, who curates the distinctive visual style of the label. The label made its debut with the simultaneous release of the first two entries in its catalogue: Pendulum, Grdina’s third solo album and the second composed for classical guitar and oud; and Klotski, the studio debut of Gordon Grdina’s Square Peg, an exploratory quartet featuring Grdina on guitar and oud, Mat Maneri on viola, Shahzad Ismaily on bass and Moog, and Christian Lillinger on drums. Two further releases followed in February 2022: Night’s Quietest Hour documented the meeting of guitar experimentalist Marc Ribot with Grdina’s Arabic music ensemble Haram, while Oddly Enough debuted a new collection of pieces by saxophonist/composer Tim Berne for solo acoustic and electric guitar with Midi sampler instruments.
Gordon Grdina is a JUNO Award-winning oud/guitarist whose career has spanned continents, decades and constant genre exploration throughout avant-garde jazz, free form improvisation, contemporary indie rock and Arabic. His singular approach to the instruments has earned him recognition from the highest ranks of the jazz/improv world. Grdina has performed and collaborated with a wide array of field-leading artists including Gary Peacock, Paul Motion, Marc Ribot, Mark Helias, Mats Gustafsson, Hank Roberts, Mark Feldman, Eyvind Kang, Colin Stetson, Mat Maneri, Christian Lilinger, Matt Mitchell and Jim Black. He currently leads multiple ensembles in Vancouver and New York, including the Gordon Grdina Quartet with Oscar Noriega, Russ Lossing, and Satoshi Takeishi; The Marrow with Hank Roberts, Mark Helias, Hamin Honari, and Josh Zubot; Square Peg with Christian Lillinger, Mat Maneri, and Shahzad Ismaily; Nomad Trio with Matt Mitchell and Jim Black; The Gordon Grdina Septet with Peggy Lee, Jesse Zubot, Kenton Loewen, Tommy Babin, Eyvind Kang and Jon Irabagon; and Haram, an Arabic/avant-garde ensemble that re-envisions the Arabic, Persian and Sudanese repertoire of the 50’s and 60’s from a modern improviser’s lens.
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