Drummer Gregg Bendian is no neophyte when it comes to fusion. His past projects have regularly involved rock elements from the William S. Burroughs-inspired Interzone to his insightful reimagining of Coltrane’s Interstellar Space in the company of guitarist Nels Cline. Similarly, the Cuneiform label has found much success in a continuing string of Yo Miles! projects by Wadada Leo Smith and Henry Kaiser. Showcasing a band that mines the catalog of John McLaughlin seems like a logical extension. Under Bendian’s putative leadership, the members of The Mahavishnu Project deviate from the strategy of their past discs by dusting off the charts to the 1972 album Visions of the Emerald Beyond and covering the LP in full. The original album clocked at barely 42-minutes, but in the live concert setting Bendian’s arrangements often stretch double-digit lengths and are ripe with baroque improvisation from the 11-piece ensemble. Three bonus tracks push the playing time to just shy of two hours.
The music pours forth as a mélange of Eastern modalities, funk, prog rock and jazz-informed improvisation. A small battery of strings enhances the orchestral capabilities and the keyboard arsenal of Adam Holzman further bolsters the band’s spatial dimensions. Bendian’s drums and percussion are rock solid, anchoring with a robust backbeat on tracks like the reverie turned hard funk workout “Lila’s Dance,” but the heaviest mantle falls on guitarist Glenn Alexander and he rises admirably to the challenge with an array of effects and a go-for-broke demeanor on his amplified and acoustic frets. “Can’t Stand Your Funk” spreads on a heavy layer of spongy reverb worthy of vintage Headhunters and an in-pocket rhythm atop which the other instruments enthusiastically vamp. Premik Russell Tubbs steals the piece with a stinging sax solo that rides out the rippling groove in a series of piercing ululations.
“Pastoral” turns attentions to the strings as Thomas jousts with accompanying string quartet and Bendian brings a percolating dumbek beat. Alexander asserts himself in the second half, his sharp acoustic picking and strumming braiding with violinist Rob Thomas’ oscillating arco work. The strings also play a prominent part in the bombastic, retro-sounding “Cosmic Strut”, a tune that could just as easily have been lifted from a Santana set list circa 1972. The program is undeniably schmaltzy in places, as during the clement vocal platitudes of “Earth Ship”, but usually in ways that are faithful to the original album’s odiferous incense and peppermints vibe. Most importantly there’s an audible sense of playful fun in both the telegraphing interplay and solos. In listening to the soaring and often ebullient improvisations, it’s easy to equate the band as a sanguine and sunny counterpart to Electric Masada’s signature gloom and doom. A notable exception arises with the conflagrative guitar and drums segment of “On the Way Home to Earth.” Bendian is definitely on to something with this more focused repertory direction and a stripped down spot-on interpretation of Inner Worlds just might be the best next step.
~ Derek Taylor
Posted by derek on January 30, 2007 3:51 PMWhat's Inner Worlds?
Posted by: walto at January 31, 2007 4:01 AMIt’s the last album by the second 70s Mahavishnu group w/ a boiled down band of McLaughlin, keyboardist Stu Goldberg, bassist Ralph Armstrong and percussionist Michael Walden.
I’ve actually never been much of a McLaughlin follower. He’s kind of like Michael Brecker in my book: a guy who did (& does) amazing things on his instruments, but almost suffers from all the hype/awe surrounding his acheivements. The stuff of his that I’ve most enjoyed is contained on the Miles Jack Johnson and Cellar Door boxes. Oh, and I can get behind Extrapolation too.
Posted by: derek at January 31, 2007 5:26 AMMaybe you had to be there when Inner Mounting Flame and Birds of Fire came out. Hard to describe the effect of all that volume, intensity, virtuosity, and Eastern mysticism on kids of a certain age/predilection.
Just as hip and almost as exciting as really good sex but somehow pietistic to boot. Most of the later stuff isn't of nearly the same caliber, IMHO. Devolved into onanism and karma cola.
Posted by: walto at January 31, 2007 6:58 AMWord, Walt. I think this group has tapped much of the material from Flame and Fire on its previous two releases (which I haven't heard).
I've never really understood musical comparisons to sex; seems like an apples and oranges thing to me with the oranges (sex) easily trumping the apples.
Posted by: derek at January 31, 2007 7:46 AMCompared to the live impact of the original MO back in 1971/2, every release by this band sounds to me as though it's coming from a group of self-conscious non-innovating clones desperate to earn a few dollars. "Project" indeed.
Posted by: Graham L. Rogers at January 31, 2007 8:08 AMHave you heard this one, Graham?
It's interesting to note that the obi sleeve to the disc contains the following McLaughlin penned endorsement: "To hear you guys playing those tunes in such an unbelievable way is quite amazing. Great job! Keep up the good work."
And Jan Hammer has this to say: "What is primary to me is they are all great musicians. Everyone has to be a good improviser. It's not enough to transcribe the tunes themselves. You have to be to take them to another place... These guys can get there."
Posted by: derek at January 31, 2007 8:17 AMDerek:
Yes, I've heard this, and their earlier releases. I'm mildly surprised by McLaughlin's and Hammer's public comments about this band. I can only put it down to lowered expectations in today's world. Get hold of a copy of the MO Cleveland April 72 concert, and your ears will surely agree.
Posted by: Graham L. Rogers at January 31, 2007 8:49 AMI have no problem believing that this stuff pales in comparison to vintage MO in concert, but neither do I have a problem with a self-professed repertory band shaping the source material to its own designs. It’s not as if they’re hurting the legacy of the MO or anything and I did find large parts of this set enjoyable on such terms.
Curious about your opinions of the various Yo Miles! projects, do you see them as similar attempts to clone what’s come before?
Posted by: derek at January 31, 2007 9:24 AMI thought the Yo Miles efforts were rather more successful overall, Derek; the latter two more than the first, not least because Leo Smith and Henry Kaiser were able to add a degree of gravitas to the occasion in taking the spirit of Miles' electric phase but making something of their own out of it. The sets had some longueurs, I agree, but overall they did a better musical job than these chaps, who sound very shallow to my ears.
Posted by: Graham L. Rogers at January 31, 2007 9:59 AMDerek--re: McLaughlin, let's not forget the first two Tony Williams Lifetime albums. Aside from the stinky vocals, those are smashing albums.
Posted by: nd at January 31, 2007 2:13 PMIndeed, Nate. I forgot about those, but would definitely include them in a consideration of "tops" McLaughlin.
Posted by: derek at January 31, 2007 2:32 PMWell said. The original 1969 Lifetime band was simply unforgettable. Then or now.
Posted by: Graham L. Rogers at January 31, 2007 10:30 PMYeah, getting "Turn it Over" was a key purchase back in the days; but those vocals!!! All this wanking about the MO concerts leaves out just how ear-splittingly horrible the sound was back then. At least with the boots you can actually hear what they were playing.
Posted by: Captain Hate at February 1, 2007 6:49 PMHate, indeed. A well-baptised man. How nice it would be if modern man discovered the original meaning of the Greek word "cynic".
Posted by: Graham L. Rogers at February 2, 2007 5:12 AMCurrish?? That was from the last set of notes I took from Antisthenes.
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