Bei Bei & Shawn Lee: Into the Wind (Ubiquity)
The guzheng is a gorgeous Chinese zither whose existence dates back two thousand years. In the hands of a marvel, it resonates with tactile beauty as its many strings are plucked with precision.
Bei Bei, a native of Chengdu, China, is one such musical technician. And this collaboration with Shawn Lee, a prolific producer who can man as many genres as he sees fit, undoubtedly will be one of the year’s finest albums.
Lee is no slouch, but his work really shines when he’s coupled with a virtuoso. Together, the two use Into the Wind to navigate through funky down-tempo jams, Kung-Fu flavor, hip hop, soul, and driving grooves.
Bei Bei & Shawn Lee: “East” (excerpt)
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Algernon: Ghost Surveillance (Cuneiform)
The brainchild of guitarist Dave Miller, Algernon walks a thin line between melodically driven post-rock and instrumental unconventionality.
The quintet, based in Chicago, has drawn comparisons to hometown compatriots Tortoise — thanks to a vibraphone and a few jazz-inflected melodies — but it very much has established its own voice, particularly on Ghost Surveillance, its third album.
This album places greater emphasis on synthesizers and sprawling song structures, but at its core is the combination of accessibility and technicality that has defined Miller’s style. Noisy, circular rock riffs transform to tranquil, wandering passages. “Timekiller,” the album’s fourth track, is a beautiful, buoyant number — and one of the band’s best creations to date.
As always, the vibraphone work of percussionist Katie Wiegman offers a warm, harmonic accompaniment, but the group’s best-supporting player may be drummer Cory Healey, whose wild fills and drum-and-bass moments imbue Ghost Surveillance with explosive bursts of energy.
Algernon: “Broken Lady”
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Chicago Underground Duo: Boca Negra (Thrill Jockey)
For 15 years, the Chicago Underground Duo (and Trio, Quartet, and Orchestra) has been an avant-garde jazz outlet for prolific Chicago musicians Rob Mazurek (Exploding Star Orchestra, Isotope 217) and Chad Taylor.
Its size and scope has shifted, but Mazurek and Taylor have been the staples of the Chicago Underground name, melding improvisation with composition through a shifting balance of impulse and atmosphere.
Boca Negra is an interesting dichotomy, as spiraling vociferation leads to upbeat grooves, shifting piano chords, harmonic electronics, and ambient samples.
“Hermeto,” for example, is built around a delicate keyboard melody, harmonizing surroundings, and a windy backdrop. “Spy on the Floor” follows with one of CUD’s most straightforward grooves, coupling with Taylor’s snare-rolling beat to craft a danceable tune.
Taylor handles the programming this time around, which helps to explain some of the duo’s new sound. Long-time fans will recognize Boca Negra as being in the CUD ouvre, but they might be surprised at its scope.
Chicago Underground Duo: “Spy on the Floor”
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Noah Creshevsky: The Twilight of the Gods (Tzadik)
Electronic composer Noah Creshevsky is a master of contrast, crafting musical patchworks from samples of orchestras, vocalists, pop music, and much more.
The Twilight of the Gods, his second album for Tzadik, is another wild series of rearrangements. Otherworldly performances rub against spliced sonic quilts. Scurrying bits of avant-classical weave in and out, bobbing between vocal undulations and interpretations of freeform rock and jazz.
This very much is for daring audiences, but regardless of preference, most listeners should agree that there is nothing quite like it.
Honorable mentions
Greg Burk: Many Worlds (482 Music)
Four Tet: There is Love in You (Domino)
Fredrik: Trilogi (The Kora)
Harvey Milk: s/t reissue (Hydra Head)
Yuka Honda: Heart Chamber Phantoms (Tzadik)
Joan of Arc presents: Don’t Mind Control compilation (Polyvinyl)
Sam Sadigursky: Words Project III: Miniatures (New Amsterdam)
Slow Six: Tomorrow Becomes You (Western Vinyl)
Univers Zero: Clivages (Cuneiform)
Tags: 482 Music, Algernon, Bei Bei, Chicago Underground Duo, Cuneiform, Dave Miller, Domino, Exploding Star Orchestra, Four Tet, Fredrik, Harvey Milk, Hydra Head, Isotope 217, Joan of Arc, Noah Creshevsky, Rob Mazurek, Shawn Lee, Thrill Jockey, Tortoise, Tzadik, Ubiquity, Yuka Honda
[...] an interpretation by Noah Creshevsky, a peerless patchwork composer/re-arranger who just released his own disc of inspired creations. The result, to say the least, is [...]