For a
young jazz musician willing to put down roots in the metropolis, New York City
can be as unforgiving in its daily tribulations as it is nourishing to the
adventurous artistic spirit. On his new album, Gotham (released April 22 on
Ottimo Music) vibraphonist Tyler Blanton molds reflections of his now
seven-year residence in New York into a mesmerizing musical portrait that is as
captivating, aggressive and challenging as the city itself. With indispensible
support from tenor saxophonist Donny McCaslin, drummer Nate Wood and Matt
Clohesy on acoustic and electric bass, Blanton invests Gotham with potent
influences from the worlds of rock, fusion, techno and new jazz. Those who know
Blanton primarily as a swinging in-the-tradition jazz virtuoso are in for an
ear-opening, thoroughly invigorating, surprise. Blanton's extraordinary command
of his instrument and his acumen as a composer are as pronounced as ever; what
has changed is the expansive nature of his musical vision.
Attentive
listeners most familiar with Blanton's work from his critically acclaimed 2010
debut album Botanic will now find that the expert, swing-informed
instrumentalist of that period has since expanded his vistas considerably.
Others who have enjoyed Blanton's more recent live performances with his own
ensembles or as a prized sideman will recognize how this risk-taking musician
has rapidly moved beyond the boundaries of conventional post-bop jazz,
incorporating the innovative rhythmic ploys and sonic experimentation that are the
calling cards of Blanton's audacious peers in the New York alternative jazz
scene. With the leader encouraging (and matching) the slamming energy of his
cohorts - while also making imaginative use of the Malletkat, an electronic
vibes-like instrument that triggers a Midi for a wide swath of sonic colors -
Gotham bursts with a grab-you-by-the-collar attitude that owes much to the
assertive texture of New York City itself. "This album is specifically
more eclectic than my earlier work," Blanton says. "It's edgier, more
hard hitting, assertive and rhythmic. You can hear echoes of groove music and
rock, even heavy metal! It's an intense album, in the way that just living
day-to-day in New York can be intense."
The
year-plus period before the recording of Gotham - which found Blanton cementing
both the compositions and the group sound - can be easily detected in the
quartet's ease with the often fiendishly challenging arrangements as well as
the creative give-and-take that highlights each track. Gotham's opening salvo -
"Never Sleeps," "Freaky Dream," "Gotham" and
"Cogs" - is a burst of jubilant energy with equal displays of musical
muscle, pinpoint ensemble accuracy and improvisational discernment. The
extended "Tunnels," with its enthralling rhythmic vigor and riveting
solos, is a prime example of the (in Blanton's words) "epic quality"
that he strove to capture when he was first conceptualizing the textural
architecture of Gotham. Blanton chose his ensemble with the specific skills of
each member in mind: the invaluable contributions of the seemingly tireless
McCaslin, the ever-supportive Clohesy and the relentlessly inventive and
phenomenally skillful drummer Nate Wood are especially evident throughout.
The
concluding track, "Breaking through the Clouds," is a stunning ballad
that acts as a declaration of ultimate hope and affirmation, stating in sound
that while New York can often threaten to break you, its vitality can, in fact,
offer an artist uncommon inspiration. Which in Blanton's case, it emphatically has:
"I wanted Gotham to announce that my aesthetic had changed, that here was
something different and worth checking out. Whether you like it or not, this
album is an authentic statement of where my music is now at."
Tyler
Blanton grew up outside Los Angeles, California, where he switched from drums
to vibraphone at the age of eighteen. After graduating from Sonoma State
University with a degree in jazz studies, Blanton moved to New York where he
has worked with such significant jazz instrumentalists as the saxophonists Joel
Frahm, Seamus Blake and Donny McCaslin, and the drummers Matt Wilson, Ari
Hoenig and Richie Barshay, among many others.
Blanton has performed and conducted workshops throughout the U.S.,
Europe and Asia.
