Axel Doerner/Greg Kelley/Andrea Neumann/Bhob Rainey - Thanks Cash

Axel Doerner/Greg Kelley/Andrea Neumann/Bhob Rainey
Thanks Cash
Sedimental
SEDCD036

Three performances culled from what the booklet describes as an “exhaustive” US tour in September 2001 find the nmperign duo in the company of Doerner and Neumann. It’s an instrumental configuration I find appealing, that of three winds (though Doerner doubles on laptop) operating with a “bed” of sorts provided by Neumann. Things are rarely that clean cut, of course, but there are touchpoints where this almost “traditional” element (winds over chordal/rhythmic accompaniment) is encountered that serve as small islands of comfort, stepping stones toward the quartet’s further reaches. One notable impression of the disc as a whole is how forceful much of the music is. Not necessarily loud (though portions are louder than one might expect), but almost non-stop urgent. You get the impression that maybe Rainey, in choosing these particular performances, was reacting a bit against the label of “reductionism” applied to much of his (and others’) work, a problematic issue he’d already raised in print.

One of the most attractive formal areas explored by this quartet is apparent from the opening seconds of the first track: three wind players exploring breath-tones simultaneously. It’s a great sound, at once linear and complex, allowing the listener to focus in on various aspects of the flux. When offset by Neumann’s skittering string work, there’s almost an embarrassment of riches, more threads than one can follow. There are any number of fine, dark passages, as when Doerner (on laptop) lays down a low rumble, with Kelley finding softly popping sounds and Neumann delicately plucking her innenklavier. It’s as moody, atmospheric and cinematic an effect as you’re likely to find in this area of music. The entire piece undulates with an eely naturalness that sustains strong dramatic tension even as one wants to concentrate on the pure sounds. Very effective. The second, longest, track picks up where the previous one left off, slowly developing a furious maelstrom of wind, breath and screams. Here, as occasionally elsewhere, Rainey allows his soprano to roam into relatively recognizable territory and it works quite well. It will be interesting to hear where reed players go after scouring their instrument’s nether regions for so long; a return, with newly acquired information, to more “normal” tonalities might be one outcome. There’s a marvelous moment, beginning about 15 minutes in, where Neumann (I’m guessing—perhaps Doerner on laptop), initiates a vast, downward-moving throb of sound. Accompanied by staticky detritus and quietly moaning horns, the effect is stunning, swerving into an area as unexpected as it is lusciously verdant. If the final track is a bit more distracted and less cohesive, it’s a small matter. The bulk of “Thanks Cash” is a very rewarding affair, a fine document of four musicians who one hopes will get together again.

~ Brian Olewnick