Barker/Parker/Irabagon – ‘Bakunawa’

(Out Of Your Head Records, review by Tony Dudley-Evans)

Bakunawa is an album by three important players on the creative New York scene: drummer Andrew Barker, bassist William Parker and saxophonist Jon Irabagon. All three have performed together in different configurations, but this is their first album as a trio.

William Parker and his wife, Patricia Nicholson organise the annual Vision Festival, which keeps alive the approach to free jazz pioneered by Ornette Coleman; Parker is very active in New York. Jon Irabagon is an extremely versatile player, equally at home in straight ahead and free situations; he is a Filipino American, won the Thelonious Monk Jazz Competition in 2008 and received a Philippine Presidential Award in 2014. Andrew Barker leads his own free jazz groups as well as performing with key members of New York’s creative scene.

The music here is freely improvised, led by Irabagon on either tenor or sopranino saxophone over Parker and Barker’s strong pulse and only occasionally breaking down into individual solos. It is a very good example of a key feature of free jazz, that is call and response interaction between the players based on close listening. This feature is apparent on the title track and Was One, both dominated by Irabagon’s tenor. On Bakunawa Irabagon makes extensive use of extended techniques and a wide range of tonality which can become rather irritating; by contrast, on Was One he integrates these unorthodox methods with a more tonal approach that feels more comfortable.

On Morgan Avenue Second Line Parker plays pocket tuba and Irabagon plays sopranino saxophone initially, before switching to tenor; the different sounds of these instruments create some interesting textures. Irabagon also begins For Goya, on sopranino while Parker plays the gralla, a double reed instrument from Catalunya. The call and response between the two also creates a unique and attractivIrabagon is particularly effective on Fly Anew which begins in a more contemplative mood with a duet between tenor sax and double bass; Irabagon plays a haunting and moving solo that gradually builds in energy when the drums enter after two plus minutes.

The album brings out the versatility of the three musicians and provides a very listenable example of free jazz.

LINK: Available from Bandcamp
William Parker’s Little Huey Music Instagram feed

from https://londonjazznews.com