Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Sébastien Paindestre Trio: Paris

13

Sébastien Paindestre Trio: Paris

By

Sign in to view read count
Sébastien Paindestre Trio: Paris
French pianist Sebastien Paindestre—last heard on the French/American quartet Atlantico's En Rouge (La Fabrica'son, 2016)—leads his own trio in a mostly-original program. The liner notes credit a Fender Rhodes technician, and the opener "Scottish Folk Song" (by Walt Weiskopf) shows why. After introducing the tune on acoustic piano with double bassist Jean-Claude Oleksiak and drummer Antoine Paganotti (with the pastoral sound promised by the title) the Rhodes makes a dramatic entry with a distorted, highly electronic sound. It's very distinctive, almost like a synthesizer rather than a piano, and it brings out an aggressive side to Paindestre's soloing.

The instrument performs a similar function on the third track, "Gaza-Paris-Jerusalem (For Peace)." There it is used both as a solo voice and as the voice of conflict during a brief unsettled section. The Beatles tune "Mother Nature's Son" gets a memorable jazz treatment next. The Rhodes is used to play the head, this time with a more conventional celeste-like bell sound. Bassist Oleksiak also gets a nice solo showcase.

It's not all about the Rhodes, though. "Louise-Anne" is an acoustic portrait of Paindestre's eight year old daughter, a lovely tune that fills the ballad slot here, although it's not quite a ballad. "La Paindestrerie" shows what the group can do with a straight-ahead hard bop tune. Despite the somewhat fusion feel elsewhere in the program, they swing like mad here. The final track is a change of pace, a duet with classical soprano saxophonist Nicolas Prost on a piece he commissioned. "Round' Radiohead" makes reference both to the Thelonious Monk classic "'Round Midnight" and the rock group Radiohead—Paindestre has previously recorded two tribute albums: Tribute to Radiohead (Musea, 2010) and Tribute to Radiohead Vol.2 (Musea, 2013). It's a gentle coda to an energetic contemporary jazz program.

Track Listing

Scottish Folk Song; Jazz'titudes; Gaza-Paris-Jerusalem (For Peace); Mother Nature's Son; Blues for Violaine; Louise-Anne; La paindestrerie; Round' Radiohead.

Personnel

Sébastien Paindestre: piano, Rhodes; Jean-Claude Oleksiak: contrabass; Antoine Paganotti: drums.

Album information

Title: Paris | Year Released: 2016 | Record Label: La Fabrica'son

Comments

Tags

Concerts


For the Love of Jazz
Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create 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.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve 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.

More

Love Is Passing Thru
Roberto Magris
Candid
Sunny Five
Inside Colours Live
Julie Sassoon

Popular

Eagle's Point
Chris Potter
Light Streams
John Donegan - The Irish Sextet

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.