His sound is dark and it has a grain and an edge, except when he plays in a soft burble or croon. It can bark and crack with a brittle edge, yet all of it is done with tone, with timbre. His lines are full of invention, expressed in melody and in abstract shapes.
This album is both intellectual and exciting, earthy and ethereal. The sheer quality of the playing is overwhelming. I sincerely hope that Melbourne continues to embrace the tradition that has evolved around Browne and his disparate associates.
“Even at their softest, smokiest, most meditational or sensual this band keeps the form strong.”
No sooner had I filed the review of the Bernie McGann album Wending on this site than McGann’s closest musical associate John Pochée phoned me with the news that our great and dear friend had gone.
One of McGann’s great virtues is his ability to project feeling and indeed raw powerful emotion – and to stimulate the visual imagination – whether he is playing simple or complex lines.
Violent surges – perhaps struggles of the drowning man – lunge forward with a three-dimensional presence, then veer and spiral giddily. This writing is really first class.
These magical buoyancies rise from a persistent, intricate conversation of remarkable cohesion and purpose. Propositions are advanced and tested, sometimes at the same dynamic level, sometimes breaking into sensational bursts of energy. And for long stretches it all moves beyond conversation as if three lines of counterpoint are being written simultaneously by a single composer.
Fast, barely moving, through thick ensemble textures and spare, you can hear the strings of Tamara Murphy’s double bass vibrating. This is very good recording, but it is also very strong playing, striding right on through.
Exhilaration does not fade for those who are listening rather than assuming. It builds as the bricks seem to be stacked more rapidly to form more complex percussive patterns. Or are thrown one by one through the air.
‘The whole work was beautifully measured, finally showering us with brilliant sound and sensation. This was a triumph to be stored in memory…’
