Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Rent Romus' Life's Blood Ensemble: Rogue Star

72

Rent Romus' Life's Blood Ensemble: Rogue Star

By

Sign in to view read count
Rent Romus' Life's Blood Ensemble: Rogue Star
Experimental San Francisco Bay Area record label Edgetone Records states, this band "reflects the influences which make up their collective interest in storytelling, exploring expanded borders, and discovery." No doubt, this red hot ensemble doesn't stay content following a one-dimensional musical path, as they branch out on a recurring basis via these fluid and manifold works.

The sextet features the dual bass attack of Max Judelson and Safa Shokari. In effect, the ensemble abides by a flexible but firmly grounded manifesto from a standpoint of branching out and not regurgitating tried and true formulas. Yet their flexibility emanates from Amazonian-like tribal treatments, modern jazz arrangements, bop, free bop and intermittent strolls into the free and fearless peripheries of jazz.

With converging horns and multicolored song-forms, the frontline operates as a continual reenergizing machine with rubato movements, brazen soloing spots and blitzing breakouts. The title track "Rogue Star" is dedicated to acclaimed jazz saxophonist Donny McCaslin who was David Bowie's sideman on his final album Blackstar (Columbia, 2016). And while this piece has nothing to do with rock, it is constructed with a world groove motif and Romus' (alto sax) and Joshua Marshall's (tenor sax) melodic and gleeful phrasings atop Mark Clifford's accenting vibes work.

The musicians' frothy movements and sinewy discourses are complex but are not full-fledged bombardments. Wily and soaring horns, along with the bassists' prodding ostinato on "Cassini" lead to multi-textured conversations. Consequently, the ensemble's discovery processes often lead to tangible themes and melodic hooks amid groove-based rhythms and scorching exchanges.

"Slipstream" closes out the program with Clifford's jazzy intro and Timothy Orr's (drums) swishing cymbal hits, complemented with call and response dialogues and the hornists' smooth choruses that transform into harmonious themes and electric trumpeter Heikki "Mike" Koskinen's intensifying lines. Moreover, Orr's Latin-tinged pulse drives a bustling passage for the soloists' crisp and capacious interactions, amped by Romus' rapid-fire sonic assault. Indeed, Romus' Life's Blood Ensemble is one of the best in the business.

Track Listing

Prelude to Departure; Space is Expanding; Rogue Star; Think!; Cassini; Past the Vale; Emotism; Kylä vuotti uutta kuuta (The village waited for the new moon); Slipstream.

Personnel

Rent Romus
saxophone, alto

Rent Romus: alto saxophone, flute; Joshua Marshall: tenor saxophone; Heikki “Mike” Koskinen: e- trumpet, tenor recorder; Mark Clifford: vibraphone; Safa Shokrai: double bass; Max Judelson: double bass; Timothy Orr: drums.

Album information

Title: Rogue Star | Year Released: 2018 | Record Label: Edgetone Records

Comments

Tags


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.