CD Naim Empirical: Tabula Rasa

2013

Tom Farmer - contrabas
Nathaniel Facey - saxofon alto
Shaney Forbes - tobe
Lewis Wright - vibrafon
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Benyounes String Quartet:
Zara Benyounes - vioara
Emily Holland - vioara
Sara Roberts - viola
Kim Vaughan - violoncel

Produced by Empirical
Recorded by Dave Moore at Assault and Battery 2, London, UK
Mixed by Dave Moore and Empirical
Mastered by Ray Staff at Air Studios, London, UK

As on 2009's Out'n'In and 2011's Elements of Truth, young British quartet Empirical continue to inventively stretch the scope of their small lineup. This double album began as a collaboration with the Benyounes String Quartet, so the jazz group's habitual avoidance of familiar sounds is now compounded by an agenda moving much closer to classical chamber music.

Saxophonist Nathaniel Facey's The Simple Light Shines Brightest fires staccato sax motifs through weaving strings lines, while vibraphonist Lewis Wright's The Prophet is a more playful, warmer and folk-tinged theme, and bassist Tom Farmer's Ascent builds a curtain of deep cello sounds and high violin tones. Walking basslines come and go, as do Native American percussion patterns, New York downtown rhythm games and Latin grooves; Facey's Scoffie is a delightful visit to the jazz line of Charlie Parker via Ornette Coleman. A single disc might have caught the essence of this fusion even better, but Empirical's skill and ingenuity keep on growing. [ the guardian ]