Personnel:
Bob Gingery (b), Jon Irabagon (ts), Mike Baggetta (g), Jeff Hirshfield (d)
Reference: FSNT-544
Bar code: 8427328435444
"I very much enjoyed Gingery’s FS debut Traveler, which featured essentially the same group, albeit with Hirshfield in for (from memory) Mark Ferber on drums. That single change perhaps influences the sound and feel more than might be expected. The new record is more flowing, less angular. Irabagon is in imperious form and without a whiff of the ironic pastiche that sometimes overtakes his work (and not just with Mostly Other People Do The Killing). Baggetta plays proper jazz guitar, while still appreciating how rocky swells and occasional effects can enhance the impact of his playing. Hirshfield is a star turn, as spoken.
The leader stakes a fairly prominent claim in the mix, without dominating unduly. His lines always seem to reveal the inner structure of a piece, particularly on the lovely title track, which may simply be an evocation of Carolina’s Outer Banks, or more specifically about the moment we finally beat gravity there. It’s an elevated composition, not so much weightless as aerodynamic and open-skied.
Gingery won the Thelonious Monk Competition some years back, so including a composition by the master seems like a bread-and-butter thank you. More surprising is the Pink Floyd cover, but why not? It’s a great tune and it has, if not the greatest bass line ever, then certainly scope for imagination in that register. Put side by side with Traveler, this announces Gingery as a significant new presence and someone to watch."
Brian Morton
Jazz Journal (April, 2017)
