Rick Parker & Hernan Hecht | 'When It Stares You In The Face"

When It Stares You in the Face may be the first commercial release by the duo Rick Parker and Hernan Hecht, but their musical connection spans over 15 years and several genres of music. Parker, a trombonist based in New York City, who is known for his use of electronics to augment his playing, has released 9 records as a leader/co-leader and worked alongside a wide array of artists including Tim Berne, Frank Lacy, Mingus Big Band, Charli Persip, Muhal Richard-Abrams Orchestra, Ravish Momin and Michael Attias. Nate Chinen has described his music as “an expressive new-breed fusion, informed by a few generations of downtown experimentation.” (New York Times). Drummer, Hernan Hecht, recently relocated to his native Argentina after over 25 years living in Mexico City where he played on and produced over 300 records and won a Latin Grammy for his production of Ely Guerra’s “Hombre Invisible”. His drumming has brought him through a wide variety of groups including his own HH X-Pression Quartet and artists including Natalia LaFourcade, Lila Downs, Ximena Sariñana, A Love Electric, John Medeski, David Gillmore, and Mark Helias to name a few.

The two musicians first worked together when Hecht helped organize a tour for Parker in Mexico performing his jazz quartet music along with NYC bassist Ricky Rodriguez and Mexican pianist, Mark Aanderud in 2007. From that point, the two continued to collaborate and tour in both the US and Mexico forming several different groups of their own including their avant-garde quartet, 4 Limones, which included Aanderud as well as renowned saxophonist Tim Berne and an experimental groove-based trio, Ambient Assault, along with grammy award winning keyboardist/songwriter/producer Sam Barsh (Avishai Cohen Trio, Kendrick Lamar, Alo Black, Kanye West). They also toured together as sidemen with groups including an augmented version of Todd Clouser’s A Love Electric (which often included percussionist Cyro Baptista and trumpeter, Steven Bernstein) as well as Mexican pop sensation Ximena Sariñana. 

This new album was recorded in one day at Hecht’s studio in the Coyoacan neighborhood of Mexico City. Parker was visiting Mexico while touring with another band and had a day off so the two decided to make the most of it. The musicians improvised for several hours, sometimes deciding on different tempos ahead of time so Parker could sequence a synthesizer to a tempo and synchronize any loops he created. Overall, the session was spontaneous but built upon the years of past music the two musicians had made together and each song was made in one take with no overdubbing (just some post-production effects and the addition of a humorous vocal sample in the 4th track, “The Shadow Zone”). Rather than adopting a more jazz-centric style with lots of solos, the concept was to play different grooves and textures to create different scenes. Each song is a journey to a new imaginary location rather than a vehicle for flashy soloistic improvisation although the duo’s technical prowess on their instruments can not be denied. 

Parker’s use of trombone with effects evokes the style of the late trumpet visionary, Jon Hassell, by using the horn with delays and reverb to create textures and harmonies but he also delves further into sonic manipulation with distortion and looping inspired by guitarists such as David Torn and Bill Frisell. Hecht’s gigantic drum sounds and driving rhythm propel the album and his frequent use of drum breaks provides many surprising twists and turns to the music, suddenly changing the direction of the music midsong. In addition to his trombone playing Parker’s use of multiple synthesizers brings yet another layer to the music. His bass synthesizer frequently acts as a third group member, playing sequenced bass lines and blazing fast arpeggiations that often serve as a foundation for the duo’s improvisations. A second synth provides sparse chordal support and higher tones that provide a glimmer on top of this very heavy, driving album. Although these are all single-take recordings with no overdubs, Hecht’s grammy winning production chops are apparent on this recording with beautiful drum effects, creative mixing, and some subtle, and not-so-subtle, samples snuck into the occasional track.