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Antoine Pierre: Suspended (Live at Flagey)

By Mario Calvitti
January 16, 2021
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Antoine Pierre: Suspended (Live at Flagey)

Although the Belgian music scene is rich and varied, it is much neglected outside its national borders, as evidenced by the case of

Aka Moon

band / ensemble / orchestra
b.1992

" data-original-title="" title="">Aka Moon, an extraordinary trio that has celebrated 25 years of activity, but is still practically ignored by the foreign media. Let's hope the same does not happen with this new young talent, the drummer

Antoine Pierre

drums
b.1992

" data-original-title="" title="">Antoine Pierre, and his group Urbex, already among the main protagonists of the 2020 edition of the Brussels Jazz Festival.

Suspended was recorded live in January 2020 at the aforementioned festival hosted by the Cultural Center of Flagey. That night the music was introduced as "Variations on Bitches Brew," a tribute to electric

Miles Davis

trumpet
1926 - 1991

" data-original-title="" title="">Miles Davis through original compositions by Pierre. For the occasion, his usual sextet, in which in particular stand out the trumpeter

Jean-Paul Estiévenart

trumpet
b.1985

" data-original-title="" title="">Jean-Paul Estiévenart, pianist

Bram De Looze

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Bram De Looze and guitarist

Bert Cools

guitar, electric

" data-original-title="" title="">Bert Cools (all musicians already well established on the Belgian scene, and names to watch) had become Urbex Electric with the presence of three guests,

Ben van Gelder

saxophone, alto
b.1988

" data-original-title="" title="">Ben van Gelder on soprano sax,

Jozef Dumoulin

keyboards

" data-original-title="" title="">Jozef Dumoulin on Fender Rhodes, and

Reinier Baas

guitar
b.1985

" data-original-title="" title="">Reinier Baas on guitar, in order to recreate with a more appropriate instrumentation the sounds of the Davis album which had been taken as a reference, but without the intention of doing just a simple re-reading.

Certainly an ambitious project, but one that can be considered successful. From the opening "Steam" we find ourselves immersed in the boiling atmospheres inspired by Davis' masterpiece, made possible by solid and rigorous writing that combines composition and improvisation. The set then continues through more calm and meditative moments such as the long "What U Expect!" (reminiscent of the Davis composition "Sanctuary"), framed between two tracks (the two "Abstracts") where we can appreciate the electronic textures, before returning to the groove of "You Nod But You Ain't" that leads to the final track, "Sound Barrier," passing through a drum solo highlighting the leader's skills. The concert ended with the performance as an encore of "Directions," that was the theme song of the live electric Davis, but it is not included on the CD.

In addition to Pierre's extraordinary composing talent, the interplay and cohesion shown by the whole group (bassist Félix Zurstrassen and percussionist Frédéric Malempré complete the lineup) merits mention. All the musicians contribute to the final result as a collective, through a series of musical interlockings that can be best appreciated through repeated listenings . One of the best albums released in 2020.

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Track Listing

Steam; Obsession; Abstract: Peace; What U Expect!; Abstract: Tide; Feather; You Nod But You Ain't; Drums Take Over; Sound Barrier.

Personnel

Antoine Pierre

drums

Jean-Paul Estiévenart

trumpet

Ben van Gelder

saxophone, alto

Bert Cools

guitar, electric

Reinier Baas

guitar

Bram De Looze

piano

Jozef Dumoulin

keyboards

Félix Zurstrassen

bass, electric

Frédéric Malempré

percussion

Album information

Title: Suspended (Live at Flagey) | Year Released: 2020 | Record Label: OutNote Records

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