Rogue Art 7
Scott Fields posits a somewhat idiosyncratic attitude toward musical partnerships. He takes his time and isn’t averse to what at first may seem like incongruous collaborations. This new Rogue Art release corroborates that characterization with what might be first in terms of instrumentation. On paper, the combination of electric guitar, tenor saxophone, analog synth and guzheng might seem an oil and water proposition, but Fields balances notation with improvisation over four long pieces and ably proves its viability. Each piece appears to be named after friends and patrons of the four.
The disc title refers indirectly to a phenomena often cited by Fields where bands in which he is involved commonly coalesce under his umbrella ensemble rubric. The shift in this case came not from a domineering sense of self-importance, but a gradual realization of Fields as focal point for the group. Thomas Lehn frequently acts as agent provocateur, his synth set-up the most mutable in terms of accessing taxonomically unfamiliar sounds. At times he swirls and eddies around the fringes, inserting gurgles and blips amidst the others’ more circumscribed interplay. In other spots, as on the opening of “Brad and Laura Winter” he surges into pole position, sounding a bit like Sun Ra behind a phalanx of buttons and keys and building a pump-organ-meets-calliope chorus in concert with Fengxia that in a weird way recalls the darker carny side of Tom Waits.
Mattias Schubert is similarly liberal in his palette on sax, moving from cottony breath sounds to skirling cries and even relatively straight melodic statements. As the strings contingent Fields and Fengxia make for a consistently catalytic pairing, the latter moving from fragments of Chinese melodies to spates of kitchen-utensils-on-iron-grate dissonance while Fields plays everything from faux classical patterns to hook-toothed blues arpeggios. Lulls do occur, but rarely for very long and each of pieces achieves a pleasingly organic tractability. Variety is the spice and the four pack plenty in. A word too to Fields clipped cadence liners which are as clever, whimsical and self-deprecating as ever and an apposite appendix to the music.
~ Derek Taylor
Posted by derek on November 14, 2007 4:34 PMIt should be interesting to listen to. One little remark : in this review it is nowhere said that all four players are based in Köln or in the vicinity. That is one of the reasons they play together. It seems when you read reviews that improvising artists hang in the air. There is a Kölner / NordRhein way to improvise collectively. even if two of these players come from other continents. Interesting also the fact that there are compositions. Schubert and Fields are playing with scores quite often. Thomas is very often "free-improv" although he has some credits as a contempo. class.pianist. So , i hope this is a good recording..........
Posted by: jean michel vs at November 19, 2007 2:53 PMWhen did Scott move to Cologne?
Posted by: derek at November 19, 2007 7:11 PMFrom Scott's website:
"Eventually I settled on the near north side (at the time a land of earnest folk singers and money-grubbing rock bands) before moving to Madison, Wisconsin a coon’s age ago. Now I spend most of my time in Cologne, Germany, which, among other things, is home to the Parliament of Music."
BTW, 'Phliks' is great, like just about everything else Mr Fields has done for the last couple of years. I thought his earlier work was sort of uneven, but he's definitely on a roll, of late.
Posted by: Bill_R at November 19, 2007 9:49 PMThanks, Bill. I'm still wondering when exactly he opted for expat status. Guessing it was in the last year or so?
Posted by: derek at November 20, 2007 7:07 AMlike all of his cds i have heard he is great at putting a band together and convincing a good label to release it but the guitar playing is boring and average.......
Derek,
Aren't musicians allowed to post comments?
best,
Scott
Posted by: Hugh Jarrid at December 27, 2007 9:23 AMIn response to a question above, it can be reported that Fields took his average, boring guitar playing to Cologne four years ago.
Posted by: Hugh Jarrid at December 31, 2007 12:48 AMWhy you gotta be such a hater, Hugh? Mr. Fields’ career has been the most consistent fodder for your own! :-)
Not sure what your question is in response too, Scott, but anyone is allowed to post pretty much anything here, musicians especially. I hadn’t the faintest about your relocation to Cologne, but hope you’ve found happiness there.
Posted by: derek at December 31, 2007 7:49 AMHey Derek,
Actually I sure Jarrid didn't mean for the question about musicians posting to be posted. Most likely he was just asking you but didn't have a current address. He is an elitist pig and probably won't contribute to a discussion to which musicians are admitted. Just shows again what a drunken sot he is. I suggest taking his comment down, since for some reason he signed it with my name.
Cologne is good in many ways, not the least of the collaboration opportunities. The relationships with European labels (Clean Feed, Rogue Art, Neos) has been especially helpful. Clean Feed has four in the can waiting for release (two new, two more reissues), and I'm tracking for Neos later this week.
best,
Scott
Posted by: Scott Fields at January 3, 2008 8:59 AMScott, Neos is a new one to me. Glad to hear that you have so much in the pipeline and that Cologne has been good for the career.
I heard from secondhand sources that Jarrid is secretly the sole (to date) member of the Scott Fields Impersonators’ Society, which would explain his bizarro Boswellian fixation. Whether the claim is true or not, such a public unmasking would probably blemish his already besotted credibility beyond repair, so I hesitate to broadcast it far and wide.
Posted by: derek at January 3, 2008 9:38 AMHi again, Derek.
Sorry for the multiple posts. I haven't used this sort of blabbing software before and now I'm getting out of the posting business. I was just googling the Phliks CD to see if anyone reviewed it, since I think the label didn't do much to promote it, and came across your question and decided to update you. Anyway, you won't have Scott Fields to kick around anymore.
I recommend that you block that Jarrid snot. He's nothing but trouble and I'm not sorry I borrowed his girlfriend for a few weeks way back when. At least he responded to that player hater, in his way.
best,
Scott
p.s. www.neos-music.com
Posted by: Scott Fields at January 3, 2008 11:59 AMNo problem, Scott. The molasses-slow posting times are due to the archaic Moveable Type software that manages the Bagatellen site architecture. Despite appearances, all it takes is a single “click” of the “Post” button to publish a comment.
I hear you on the relatively low profile of Rogue Art; I haven’t had much luck corresponding with Michel lately. Thanks for the Neos url & for swinging by. I hope that you’ll opt to again in the future.
And as for that Jarrid jerk, he seems suitably cowed by my semi-idle threat above. If we’re lucky maybe he’ll crawl back to covering his previous Catskills trad jazz beat.
Posted by: derek at January 3, 2008 12:39 PMWow.. "jerk", "snot".. this guy's really rubbed you up the wrong way (admitted, his review of your album with Parker is pretty snotty). Maybe HE'S the answer to your problems Derek, now that Brian has thrown the towel in.. give Mr Jarrid a reviewer's slot and Bags and watch the replies fly!
Meanwhile Scott happy new year & keep up the good (in my humble opinion) work. Drop me a line if you ever take that Thalys train down the road to Paris
Jarrid’s fees are too exorbitant for the paltry contents of Bags’ coffers, plus he’s not nearly alliterative enough in his prose. And then there’s the issue of his monogrammed paisley ascots, a fashion accoutrement that I simply cannot abide.
Posted by: derek at January 4, 2008 6:06 AM.................................................. © 2003 - 2006 bagatellen ..................................................