Microplatique

Somehow suggesting a séance, a jam session and musicology demonstration at once, the Chicago-based Microplatique quartet follows many roads that meet at a junction of microtonally, improvisation, ethnic musics and instrumental aptitude. The six extended tracks and the one gargantuan – almost 30 minute – title tune demonstrate the interactive qualities Microplatique members express blending  textures from enough instruments, both standard and home-made, to fill a music store. Ben Zucker, Molly Jones and Josh Harlow split their time between academe, playing and organizing gigs, while Adam Shead has recorded with improvisers like Damon Smith and Marilyn Crispell.

Involved with melodic and rhythmic transformation, most of the tunes are built up from fragments that usually encompass organ or melodica drones and idiophone metallic and acoustic accents including gong shakes, cymbal pops and percussion rebounds. Note additions and tonal ambiguity mean that dynamic changes are further expressed with  suspended plunger tones from brass instruments and irregular smears and trills from the woodwinds. Broken chord affiliations enliven the majority of the pieces, yet melodic cell addition is done with such musical guile that sound renewal is nearly seamless.

A fine instance of this is “Propane”. Here organic inferences transforms initial cadences from resounding mallet-stroked bells, chimes and glockenspiel  textures to a horn-led fragmented march. Corkscrew reed flutters soon give way to soprano saxophone screeches with near New Thing intensity before group percussion beats return to the narrative to a sped-up march.

Elsewhere textures can be as nearly opaque as projected from a pipe organ or as airy as flute trills. Linear evolution is also maintained even alongside contrapuntal emphasis in the form of half-valve breaths or clenched whines and growls arising from any one of a number of mouth instruments. Pivots and broken octave additions on a track such as “Bounce”, bring in suggestions of Klezmer or eastern European dance music, whose motifs flutter alongside idiophone drones and pressure.

“Many Roads” mixes these individual currents at greatest length. A Balkan march shares space with organ pumps, while reed buzzes and contrapuntal horn squirms vibrate on top of a droning continuum. Then, slightly past the half-way point, the piece takes on a new identity as tambura suggesting Carnatic currents meet up with an almost straight-ahead sequence projected by reed, brass and drum timbres.

Sometimes as undefinable as it’s unique, Microplatique’s music confirms that compelling sound experiments continue to emanate from the Second City.

–Ken Waxman

Track Listing: 1. Aghot’k’ 2. Inner/Outer 3. Propane  4. Turn II 5. Bounce 6. Gwere  7. Many Roads

Personnel: Ben Zucker (pocket trumpet, j horn, harmonica, toy piano, percussion, stylophone); Molly Jones (soprano saxophone, flute, alto flute, penny whistle, percussion, megaphone); Josh Harlow (toy piano, organa, melodica, flutes, straw oboe, percussion); Adam Shead (snare drum, tom toms, jam blocks, triangle, tambourine, cowbell, almaglocken, toy glockenspiel, splash cymbal, opera gongs, sun gong, wind gong, euphone, shepherds bells, sleigh bells, gamelan, tubular chimes, flute, penny whistle, megaphone, toy tape recorder, bird calls)