Published on Apr 10, 1998
Remember the skit that Steve Martin used to do on
Saturday Night Live, where he and another character would
stare into the camera and keep repeating, “What the hell is that?”
There are times I find myself asking the same thing when I listen
to an album for the first time – and often, the question is asked
in a rather negative way.
But in the case of
Bruford Levin Upper Extremities, the latest collaboration
between King Crimson bandmates Bill Bruford and Tony Levin, when I
asked, “What the hell was that?” I was pleasantly surprised, and
asked the question out of sheer joy. While this disc will shatter
any preconceived notions you had about music, it contains some of
the best conceptual pieces I think I have ever heard.
Right from the opening track “Cerulean Sea,” you can tell this
is going to be a wonderfully strange trip. With Levin thumping away
on his bass with Funk Fingers (while providing a mantra-like drone)
and guitarist David Torn throwing guitar loops here and there,
Bruford pounds out his own rhythm that almost has nothing to do
with what his other bandmates are playing. Strange thing:
it works, and it works well. This one track alone is enough
to sell me on
Bruford Levin Upper Extremities.
But wait, there’s more. Kicking into a jazz/funk piece (and
welcoming their fourth bandmate, trumpeter Chris Botti), the band
kicks into what could be a rebirth of cool in jazz. Funny thing to
note about this track, as well as this whole album: Each instrument
is in the forefront equally, something that is a refreshing change
of pace (normally, a few instruments are buried in the mix so far
that it’s damned near impossible to hear them).
The key word that is the key on this album is texture, and
Bruford Levin Upper Extremities provides a whole palate of
them for you to choose from. Whether it is the subtle touches of
what sounds like a sunrise in the Orient (“A Palace Of Pearls”),
Levin going nuts bowing his upright bass in a rock style (“Cracking
The Midnight Glass”) or even segueing from a band dinner into a
complex rhythm pattern that would challenge even the most
experienced musicians (“Etude Revisited”), this musical partnership
will constantly challenge and excite you – and I have yet to get
tired of this album, despite multiple listenings.
What is especially amazing is that Bruford and Levin can make
beautiful music out of the strangest instruments. There are
numerous interludes on which Bruford plays on a broken-down piano’s
strings, using mallets and, according to Levin, even a garden rake.
The highlight of the experimentation are the two pieces featuring
the Taos “DrumBass,” a combination bass guitar and Native American
drum. The gentleness of this instrument is incredibly powerful –
and the second interlude featuring it is further highlighted with
Torn’s working in a National slide guitar.
Bruford Levin Upper Extremities is a wonderful highlight for
both Botti (who already has been recording on the Verve label) and
Torn, whose work might be unfamiliar to many people. In fact, after
I heard his work on this album, I started kicking myself that I
hadn’t listened to or stolen a copy of
Door X from the radio station I used to work for when it
came out earlier this decade. (Another classic case of
“If-I-Only-Knew-Then-What-I-Know-Now syndrome”.)
The whole ball of wax comes together on “Presidents Day,” which
takes the best highlights of some of the album’s quirks – band
dinner, piano raking, vocal droning – and throws it all into one
beautiful mix. Incredible!
Admittedly, this album may scare off the weak-hearted – too bad,
’cause they’re gonna be missing out on something really tasty. If
you’re familiar with the previous work of any of the participants
(especially if you’re into the later-day King Crimson circa 1981),
then this should sound like a natural progression for Bruford and
Levin.
Bruford Levin Upper Extremities is not the kind of album
you’re going to find on the shelves of your local Best Buy, but
it’s worth the trouble of going through mail-order to snag what
could well be the best album of 1998.
For more information or to order this album, contact Papa Bear
Records at: (800) 688-2227, or visit their
Web page. If you order it,
please be sure to tell them that you heard about it from “The Daily
Vault”.