Tuesday, November 21, 2017

PJ Perry Quartet - Alto Gusto (CELLAR LIVE 2017)


This is an album for the bebop fans. Not the blisteringly fast, artsy-fartsy bebop, though – I’m thinking about the lovey Parker ballads and all the times Miles forgot he was done with bebop after the 50s. Actually, the last track on here is a Parker tune. And the PJ Perry Quartet is extremely good at what they do: important in a style that can be undone undone by its own complexity. The rhythm section is one of the tightest I’ve heard, and Perry himself knows when to turn it up or down with his own sax playing, his riffs feeling like anything from sweet cooing to what I imagine a heart flutter sounds like. Maybe this is what it sounds like to be in love… or maybe I’m just feeling romantic from listening to this.

Ease It
Close Your Eyes
After the Morning
We’ll Be Together Again
Stablemates
Two Bass Hit
Quasimodo