Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Cortex: Avant-Garde Party Music

Cortex: Avant-Garde Party Music

By John Sharpe
January 1, 2018
View read count

Why change a winning formula? If Norwegian crew Cortex has considered that question, then the response was likely an unconcerned shrug. Studio session Avant-Garde Party Music continues firmly in the winning vein established by Clean Feed predecessors Live! (2014) and Live In New York (2016), mashing 1960s New Thing tropes with contemporary inside/outside soloing. Trumpeter

Thomas Johansson

trumpet
b.1983

" data-original-title="" title="">Thomas Johansson pens all eight pieces in the 38-minute program, for the by now familiar cast list, completed by reedman

Kristoffer Berre Alberts

saxophone

" data-original-title="" title="">Kristoffer Berre Alberts. bassist

Ola Høyer

bass, acoustic

" data-original-title="" title="">Ola H?yer and drummer

Gard Nilssen

drums
b.1983

" data-original-title="" title="">Gard Nilssen.

Key to the success is the way Johansson's charts provide such fertile and varied frameworks within which to display the group's top notch chops. While the themes echo the sort of thing that might be heard on seminal discs by

Don Cherry

trumpet
1936 - 1995

" data-original-title="" title="">Don Cherry,

Archie Shepp

saxophone, tenor
b.1937

" data-original-title="" title="">Archie Shepp and

Albert Ayler

saxophone, tenor
1936 - 1970

" data-original-title="" title="">Albert Ayler, the arrangements and solos betray 50 years of increasing sophistication.

"Obverse/Reverse" supplies a case in point. A staccato unison introduces an unaccompanied shimmering pizzicato feature for H?yer, which proceeds with a mix of pointed ensemble interjections and dissonant improv fragments. Next Nilssen's chattering drums take a turn in the spotlight, as the interruptions become more emphatic, until a final switchback into a strolling jazzy rhythm buoys up a relaxed blues-inflected tenor saxophone excursion for Alberts, followed by a return to the opening gambit.

But choosing any track would serve up a similar tale. The opening "Grinder" contrasts a free time setting for the saxophonist's extended lines and choked wailing, with a pulsing vamp for Johansson's waspish trumpet. The rapid fire riffing of "Chaos" bookends first a punchy drum and brass duet, and then a tenor saxophone outing constructed from equal parts melody and skronk. It's all over in a flash. Perhaps most important, it sounds as if the band is having a blast. They would certainly enliven any party to which they were invited.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Grinder; Chaos; Waltz; (if You Where) Mac Davis; Disturbance; Obverse/Reverse; Perception; Off Course.

Personnel

Cortex

band / ensemble / orchestra

Thomas Johansson: trumpet; Kristoffer Berre Alberts: saxophones; Ola H?yer: bass; Gard Nilssen: drums.

Album information

Title: Avant-Garde Party Music | Year Released: 2017 | Record Label: Clean Feed Records

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Chapter 2
< Previous

Up All Night
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.