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David Binney: Anacapa
But nothing could prepare even for the most seasoned Binney fan for Anacapa, a massive statement for the saxophonist/composer. While it's easy to throw around accolades like "best album to date," every subsequent listen to this remarkable recording makes clear that if this isn't Binney's absolute best record, it's certainly a strong contender, right up there with albums that remain particularly definitive, such as South (ACT, 20011), Graylen Epicenter and Afinidad (Red Records, 2001), Binney's first of three recordings co-led with Venezuelan-born pianist
Edward Simon
pianob.1969
Still, there are certain earmarks on Anacapa that identify it instantly as a Binney record, even as the opening, synth-driven "She Loves, Introduction"—a through-composed miniature that, combines a four-on-the-floor electronic pulse with minimalist hints, synthesizers blazing otherworldly textures and close harmonies—suggests something very different going on as well. The album is bookended with the similarly synth but this time also sequencer-driven "She Hates, Outro"—in addition to its minimalist tendencies, also referencing the mitochondria of '70s electronic bands like Tangerine Dream buried somewhere deep in Binney's DNA...and, with his sparse saxophone line floating atop, some genetic coding of British saxophonist
John Surman
saxophoneb.1944
Still, while it's possible to delineate individual elements that prove even forward-thinking musicians like Binney don't emerge from a vacuum, it's the confluence of so many of these building blocks in such a deeply personal way that makes Ancapa such a remarkable—and shocking—album from someone whose discography has largely been defined by the sound of surprise.
Binney has worked with both
Adam Rogers
guitarb.1965
Wayne Krantz
guitar, electric
David Gilmore
guitar
Fima Ephron
bass, electric
Ben Perowsky
drumsb.1966
Dan Weiss
drums
Brian Blade
drumsb.1970
Obed Calvaire
drumsBetween Krantz and Rogers, the saxophonist's own overdubbed horns—this is the first time since Fiesta de Agosto (Red Records, 2005) that Binney has employed so many saxophones—along with pianist
John Escreet
pianob.1984
Louis Cole
drums
Matt Brewer
bassb.1983
Elsewhere, Anacapa rocks—and rocks hard. "Massive Humanity" is driven by a potent twin-drum back beat, a throbbing synth bass line and some massively overdriven guitar chords, leading to a series of shifting harmonies that act as a foundation for Weiss and Calvaire to solo in tandem...and pretty much blow the roof off the joint.
Half of Anacapa's five tracks—Binney compositions, all—range from nine to twelve minutes, providing ample room for soloing amidst some of Binney's most complex—and epic—writing to date. And if Lifted Land represented some of his flat-out freest work to date, despite Anacapa being far more rooted in composition, there are moments where Binney allows his extended group to dissolve into complete and utter free playing, as he does on "Imagination Sets Us Free." The album's most expansive track, it begins in visceral funk territory, with Rogers' lower-register, overdriven chord-based playing contrasting the grit of Krantz's upper register lines. A scorching solo from Binney leads to Escreet's most impressive solo of the set, blending
McCoy Tyner
piano1938 - 2020
Binney's always been a master of the anthem, and has often incorporated diverse cultural influences, but always in ways that seem to fit his most specific aural universe. "Heart Shaped Mind" may begin as a percussion duo between pandeiro player Sergio Krakowski and Weiss, who moves from his kit to tabla—an instrument long part of his musical and spiritual studies—but there's nothing particularly eastern in the flavor of the writing. Instead, as one of Anacapa's least crowded compositions, it's an ambling piece reliant upon Binney's signature use of thematic unison lines to open up into a lengthy alto solo as much about the group's interpretive expressionism as it is Binney's. He may be the soloist, but there's a wealth of big-eared interaction going on all around him that's as exhilarating as it is intuitive, even as Binney winds down and passes the baton to Escreet.
Thanks to consistent placement in the mix, for those unfamiliar with some of the players it's possible to identify their styles: Krantz and Calvaire in the left channel, Rogers and Weiss in the right. But such practicalities aside, Anacapa is a creative high watermark for Binney on a number of fronts: compositionally, it's his most richly realized album to date while, at the same time, incorporating his relatively newfound leanings toward completely unfettered freedom; its twin-guitar/twin-drums lineup lends it a density and attendant excitement that's palpable, as Binney makes terrific use, at times, of as many as eight musicians at once to weave his intricate musical tapestries, while also allowing the music to breathe through breaking things down into smaller subsets; and, as strong a player and bandleader as Binney has been for many years, he's never managed to squeeze so much challenging music into so little time.
Criss Cross sessions typically last a single day and if Binney did, indeed, record the 71-minute Anacapa in a single six-hour session then it's an even more remarkable feat than what it is for the music and performances alone. But however it was recorded, Anacapa represents Binney at his absolute best as a writer, as a performer, and as a bandleader who not only makes astute choices as to who is right for the music at hand, but in the freedom he affords them to lift the music off the written page and bring it to what is, on Anacapa, a vivid, full and creative life. ">
Track Listing
She Loves, Introduction; The Golden Zone; Massive Humanity; Distant City; Anacapa; Waiting for the Blast; Imagination Sets Us Free; Heart Shaped Mind; Santo Spirito; She Hates, Outro
Personnel
David Binney
saxophone, altoDavid Binney: Alto Sax, Tenor Sax, Soprano Sax, Vocals, Synths, Bass; Wayne Krantz: Guitar; Adam Rogers: Guitar; John Escreet: Piano, Rhodes; Matt Brewer: Electric Bass; Obed Calvaire: Drums; Dan Weiss: Drums, Tabla; Sergio Krakowski: Pandeiro; Louis Cole: Vocals; Nina Geiger: Vocals
Album information
Title: Anacapa | Year Released: 2014 | Record Label: Criss Cross
Tags
David Binney
CD/LP/Track Review
John Kelman
Criss Cross
United States
New York
New York City
Edward Simon
John Surman
Adam Rogers
Wayne Krantz
David Gilmore
Fima Ephron
Ben Perowsky
Dan Weiss
Brian Blade
Obed Calvaire
John Escreet
Louis Cole
Matt Brewer
McCoy Tyner
Anacapa
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