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For Trees & Birds: Seasons 1-4 Live
ByFor Trees & Birds is the name of their quartet and this is a live recording composed of four recent New York City college graduates sporting music degrees, who are prepared to take on the worldjazz and otherwise. This album was actually an accident. Someone at one of their concerts recorded it and gave them the music. After listening to it, they felt it was worth preserving on disc.
In the words of bassist

Ornette Coleman
saxophone, alto1930 - 2015
Actually, the revolution they aspire to had already started way back when

John Coltrane
saxophone1926 - 1967

Albert Ayler
saxophone, tenor1936 - 1970
While that label may not suitably describe music that has been around for at least half a century, at the time, it created a furor in the jazz community, much of which has since died down. In the interim, many of its practitioners have dialed it back a bit, often resorting to playing standards and familiar jazz tunes. On the other hand, it has emboldened many more boppish oriented players, who feel completely comfortable stretching the idea of extending chord changes to the outer limits.

Art Pepper
saxophone, alto1925 - 1982
At first listen, the album Seasons 1-4 Live sounds chaotic, but an open mind and ears will reveal that there is quite a bit going on here.
"The Bride" kicks off the recording with a somewhat startlingly free alto solo by

Jasper Dutz
saxophone, alto"Drink Coffee" is introduced by guitarist Lee Meadvin and is, in its own weird way, a ballad. This is very reminiscent of

Ornette Coleman
saxophone, alto1930 - 2015
Dutz explores the bass saxophone in "Intro to Mangled Colossus," showing off his affection for

Eric Dolphy
woodwinds1928 - 1964
"Mangled" continues with Meadvin offering an abstract guitar solo, gradually building intensity as bassist Gaskell and drummer
Connor Parks
drums"Gas" begins very slowly with a kind of walking bass until Dutz chimes in mournfully on bass clarinet and finally guitar and drums.
"Meadic" acknowledges the group's rock roots, but with a joyous melody hinting at

Keith Jarrett
pianob.1945
"I'm Patrick" is an exercise in simultaneous improvisation in an agonizingly slow tempo, with Dutz gradually rising to the top with an eerie exposition that then seems to become some kind of joyful anthem, until the drum take over with the song concluding unexpectedly a minute later -more stopping than ending.
"When It Gets Warmer" begins with a repetitive rock like rhythm while Dutz counters on alto with a statement that fits the groove set down by the rest of the band.
Dutz appears to be the most adventurous and accomplished of the four, but that may be due more to circumstance. All four are obviously capable musicians. Listening to this music will be an adventure to most people with open minds and ears.
There has long been a debate as to whether one must earn their stripes before venturing so far off the edge. Critics and musicians alike have bemoaned the fact that some musicians new to the scene have never learned the fundamentals; that they should be playing swing and bebop and big band music and modal jazz before straying so far from the mainstream. A few more years of experience might inform this music and make it more grounded and more accessible.
There have been thousands of bands formed by aspiring and youthful players and almost all of them have crash landed eventually. That's not to say that if five years from now For Trees & Birds is little more than a distant memory that this album is lacking in value. There are some delightful moments worth hearing. This cd is a stepping stone. It remains to be seen if they can continue stepping and perhaps smooth over some of the rougher edges and reach a wider audience. ">
Track Listing
The Bride; Drink Coffee; Intro to Mangled Colossus; Mangled Colossus; Gas; Meadic; I'm Patrick; When It Gets Warmer
Personnel
Jasper Duts: Alto saxophone, Bass Clarinet; Lee Meadvin: Guitar; Chris Gaskell:Bass; Connor Parks:Drums
Album information
Title: Seasons 1-4 Live | Year Released: 2016 | Record Label: Self Produced
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