KnCurrent

Continuing their sound explorations four veterans of New York’s creative music community manifest their ideas during this paced and provocative session of group improvisation. Led by alto saxophonist patrick brennan, who prefers his name lower case and has worked with the likes of Abdul Moimême and Butch Morris, the group includes electric violinist Jason Kao Hwang, who has played with everyone from Steve Swell to Ivo Perelman; multi-instrumentalist Cooper-Moore, whose has recorded with William Parker and multiple others; and guitarist On Ka’a Davis, who had a long association with Daniel Carter as well as membership in many seminal groups.

Balancing voltage and virtuosity, electric instruments adds a new dimension to the program. On the plugged-in side are Hwang and Davis, who often create unexpected, almost programmed currents which intersect carefully within the acoustic framework. Those motifs too are individual. For instance at intervals as on “must be ‘Who Say’,” Cooper-Moore sets up a relentless James Jamerson-like bass line with his diddley bow which in turn brings out sul ponticello stabs from Hwang and an echoing wah pedal response from Davis.

As the only horn player, brennan is both precise and passionate. That latter aspect encompassing idiosyncratic reed bites and squeaks is often paired and contrasted with arpeggiated strums from the diddley bow, finger tip guitar pressure and pinched fiddle glissandi. Linear melody fragments also appear, for instance during “tewatatewenní:io” when thematic material briefly replace the string instruments’ strained and almost vocalized buzzes. Latterly, as Cooper-Moore constant horizontal drone define the track’s evolution, the violinist’s jerky triple stops and the saxophonist’s segmented scoops and staccato yelps cannily comment on the exposition.

Overall the blended variations reach an apogee on “polyneuroceptive”, which is most characterized with reed spetrofluctuation that ascends to altissimo squeaks. Augmented with ringing guitar frails and violin string swells, brennan’s  tightened wheezes and the others’ vibrating slides are directed into a horizontal blend mostly by Cooper-Moore’s constantly changing bass string ostinato.

Combining an unusual instrumental mix with skilful sonic considerations, KnCurrent is assiduous, aggressive and assured.

–Ken Waxman

Track Listing: 1. slip apophatica 2. Dne Wol 3. must be “Who Say” 4. polyneuroceptive 5. micro circus 6.ṣumud 7. tewatatewenní:io

Personnel: patrick brennan (alto saxophone ); On Ka’a Davis (guitar); Jason Kao Hwang (electric violin) and Cooper-Moore (hand-made diddly-bo)