At the core
of everything that guitarist/composer Perry Smith does is the desire to create
personal and musical connections with the artistic community. That's true of
the community he's built around his inclusive weekly series in Brooklyn,
"The Nest Session;" it's behind his decision to use social media as a
means of reaching out, not cutting off. And it lies at the very heart of his
third album as a leader, New Angel -- both in the close relationships he shares
with his bandmates and in his desire to make the sometimes heady concepts of
modern jazz something accessible and deeply personal.
New Angel
(due out March 2 via Smith's own Smith Tone Records imprint) marks the debut of
the gifted guitarist's stellar new quintet, which features saxophonist Jon
Irabagon, pianist Glenn Zaleski, bassist Matt Aronoff and drummer Allan
Mednard. While they've all played together in a variety of contexts, Smith's
decision to bring together this particular group stems directly from their
shared experiences at Nest Sessions jams, which he and Aronoff have co-led for
more than three years.
"It's
been a really wonderful experience," Smith says. "I've been able to
play with so many incredible musicians each and every week, so I've formed a
lot of strong musical relationships. Beyond my own quintet, though, it's really
about bringing the community together and trying to create a diverse and
inclusive space for every jazz artist in the city to feel welcome."
The creative
and the activist stem from the same instincts in Smith's work. Though he
insists that he didn't set out to make a "social justice" record per
se, his response to our current divisive political moment comes through in
meditative solo "vignettes" interspersed throughout the album. Titles
like "Lullaby for Freedom" and "Hope for Peace" tell the
(ultimately optimistic) story.
"I
wanted a few of the tracks to represent the message that I wanted to get
across," Smith explains. "One of the challenges you face as an artist
is to figure out how you can make a difference with your art -- especially in
jazz, which can be so theoretical and complex. How you can go beyond that to
create work that has a deeper, greater meaning is something that I've been
passionate about for a long time."
Translating
similar instincts from the social to the musical lies behind Smith's decision
to assemble his quintet. Following his two earlier quartet recordings, Stars
and Cars (2009) and Street Sense (2013), he became drawn to composing for more
voices, so the versatility offered by the combination of a guitar, piano and
saxophone frontline became especially compelling. He found the specific
possibilities offered by weaving his own voice with those of Irabagon and
Zaleski, paired with the rhythmic imaginations of Aronoff and Mednard,
especially thrilling. The album was co-produced by Sam Minaie, who played bass
on both of Smith's previous releases and provided the unique insight of a sharp
listener with a deep knowledge of Smith and his music.
In addition,
the entire session was filmed and will be released as a series of videos
through Smith's social media outlets. Seeing the shift in the way that
listeners take in music, the guitarist wanted to be sure his music reached the
widest possible audience in the most easily accessible form. While the full
album will be available in more traditional forms, he hopes these videos will
make a more immediate connection.
The band's
thrilling chemistry is vividly apparent from the opening moments of "Rise
and Fall," whose title makes the tune's shifting moods and tempos sound
deceptively simple. The gentle, memorable melody is prime evidence of Smith's
gift for crafting compositions that embrace the listener while providing plenty
of spark for improvisation.
"Deep
Water" is a much knottier outing; its title, in fact, reflects the
challenge that confronts the quintet in its harmonic complexity and sharp,
treacherous angles. "Playing this song can feel like, 'We're in deep water
right now,'" Smith admits. "That's always been a tradition in jazz:
the idea that you're pushing yourself to try to explore something new while
still trying to create something musical."
If the title
track seems to hang in the air like an unanswered question, that may be due to
the fact that it's the earliest piece on the album, one that Smith started
working on as he turned 30, met the woman who would become his wife, and found
himself facing many of the larger "what ifs" in life. "New
Angel" may be a reference to his now-wife, but more broadly it's a
reference to a spirit of freshness and change.
The
spikiness of "Monk's World" immediately evokes the keen-edged genius
and eyebrow-arched joy of the great Thelonious Monk. Smith wrote the piece on
the chord changes of Monk's classic "Epistrophy" as a way of paying
homage to the legendary pianist's outsized influence. "In my experience on
the jazz scene in New York," Smith says, "musicians are always more
excited about playing Monk's tunes than anybody else's -- more than even
Coltrane or Wayne Shorter or Herbie. I think it has to do with the playful
nature of his songs and the cool, creative melodies that he wrote, which open a
lot of freedom in the landscape."
Presaged by
Smith's introspective, soulful "Notes for Nostalgia," "The Old
Road" is a wistful rumination on the composer's early days growing up in
the California Bay Area. A similarly reflective spirit pervades "Lucid
Night," where the incisive melody suggests a certain brooding clarity.
"Graceful
Spirit" returns the album to the theme of connection and community. It was
specifically inspired by the eloquence and example of former President Barack
Obama, but more generally muses on the idea of grace and empathy as powerful
and necessary qualities in a leader -- whether of the free world or of a
scintillating and passionate jazz quintet.
Guitarist
Perry Smith combines the tradition of jazz with broad influences from R&B,
rock and folk to create his indelible signature style. Originally from
California, Smith is now based in Brooklyn where he leads his own groups and is
a sideman for several jazz and contemporary artists. He is also a founding
member of the critically acclaimed New West Guitar Group, which has been
performing internationally for 10 years and has been recognized as one of the
premier guitar ensembles in the country. Smith received his Bachelor of Music
degree from the Flora L. Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern
California and completed his Masters in Music at New York University, studying
with the great John Scofield. His extensive performance resume includes notable
venues and festivals such as the Blue Note Jazz Club, The Village Vanguard, Dizzy's
Club Coca-Cola at Lincoln Center, the Montreal Jazz Festival, Java Jazz
Festival in Indonesia, and the Philippine International Jazz Festival. Smith
hosts a weekly series in Brooklyn called "The Nest Session",
performing with a different group of NYC's finest jazz musicians every
Wednesday, generously supported by a grant from KeyedUp.org in conjunction with
the Jazz Foundation of America.
