Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Matt Moran Trio: Return Trip

Matt Moran Trio: Return Trip

By Jerome Wilson
October 12, 2020
View read count

Vibraphonist

Matt Moran

vibraphone

" data-original-title="" title="">Matt Moran has carved out a varied musical career for himself. Among other things, he is the leader of the party band Slavic Soul Party! and a member of

John Hollenbeck

drums
b.1968

" data-original-title="" title="">John Hollenbeck's Claudia Quintet. He also leads the atmospheric jazz trio on this CD with

Gary Versace

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Gary Versace on Hammond organ and

" data-original-title="" title="">Tom Rainey on drums.

This band rewrites the notion of what an organ trio can sound like. Where a similar group with this instrumentation might be extroverted and bluesy, this trio often has a moody, exotic sound. Moran's glowing patterns, Versace's creeping surges and Rainey's unpredictable percussion make an eerie and unsettling combination, the kind of music which could soundtrack a particularly mysterious scene in a David Lynch movie. On "Ripples" and "Spring" the mesh of murmuring organ and storming drums comes off like an inversion of the overpowering sound of

Tony Williams

drums
1945 - 1997

" data-original-title="" title="">Tony Williams' original Lifetime band with Moran's carefully placed vibes serving the function of

John McLaughlin

guitar
b.1942

" data-original-title="" title="">John McLaughlin's screaming guitar. On "Chord Conversation," organ and vibes stutters sound random at first, but eventually resolve into a tense tango rhythm held together by crisp drum work. "Effish" is the closest the group comes to a conventional groove, with Rainey actually settling into a swinging rhythm while Versace and Moran trace out a Monkish lounge shuffle over him. "Sometimes That's Ok" is the most abstract work of the session, with tickling percussive noises, short beeps of organ and stretched-out vibe notes congealing into a spectral cloud of prickly but musical sounds which seem to be traveling into outer space.

These three musicians produce a unique sound which never gets loud or goes over the top, but keeps a low level of near-sinister cool which is off-center but hauntingly memorable. The combination of Matt Moran's carefully placed vibes, Gary Versace's growling organ and Tom Rainey's chameleonic drumming produce heady, spaced-out music which sounds like a minimalist version of

Sun Ra

piano
1914 - 1993

" data-original-title="" title="">Sun Ra.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Ripples; Spring; Chord Conversation; Lush; Sometimes That's Ok; Effish; Peace and Integration.

Personnel

Matt Moran

vibraphone

Gary Versace

piano

Tom Rainey

drums

Album information

Title: Return Trip | Year Released: 2020 | Record Label: Diskonife

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Tamar Osborn: From Kalakuta To Collo...
< Previous

Mar��
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.