Consentrik Quartet [180g 2 LP]

by Nels Cline

Overview

Consentrik Quartet is Nels Cline's fourth album on Blue Note. In keeping with the aesthetic followed on previous titles for the label, he shifts lineups and direction here. This marks the recorded debut of his quartet with saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock, drummer Tom Rainey, and bassist Chris Lightcap. Given their collective credits, to call this album diverse is inaccurate. Set-opener "The Returning Angel" is introduced with rubato solo playing and trance-like arpeggios above a brushed drum kit, a mournfully tender saxophone, and a sparse bassline. It's a mysterious meditation that gels into a mysterious post-bop ballad. Lightcap's strident upright bass vamp introduces "The 23." Cline weaves slashed chord figures under it as Rainey bumps and pushes; Laubrock maintains the lyric frame until taking an incendiary solo rich in harmonic assertions. At two minutes in, she and Cline reference Hermeto Pascoal's samba approach before Rainey's Latinized groove claims the fore. Cline delivers a glorious solo, equal parts jazz-rock, surf, and funky swing. "Surplus" showcases a joint frontline in a knotty, fingerpopping vamp underscored by Lightcap's groove and Cline's illustrative chord voicings. Rainey punches his tom-toms and a rimshot snare before adding a syncopated hard bop vibe. Laubrock's solo is tight, expressive, and deep in its relative brevity. She's answered by Cline in a fluid solo with astonishing arpeggiatic invention. "Slipping Into Something" begins as a guitar and bass ballad before the saxophonist and drummer enter to transform the entire flow into mutant jazz-funk. Laubrock quotes from "On Broadway" when trading fours with Cline in a section. Her solo, offered initially in the horn's lower register, spurs Cline on to match her lines as the rhythm section gets very physically assertive. They initiate "Allende" with a nuevo flamenco cadence kissed by cymbal washes and an authoritative bassline, all illumined by Cline. Laubrock enters playing a moody modal melody as the tune journeys across a pallete of tones, modes, and harmonic nuances. "The Bag" was composed for Rainey. It showcases his masterful drumming in delivering intricate conversational textures, and charging swing in support of Laubrock's kinetic improvisation. Cline's intricate phrasing with Lightcap's bassline underscore the tune's momentum. "Satomi" is nearly ten-minutes long. Its loopy, dance-like vamp is played in unison before the band breaks it down to solo simultaneously. The interplay between sax and guitar is complementary to the point of revelation. Later, the tune gets more abstract and raucous. Notable inspirations reflect the influences of Ornette Coleman & Prime Time and Frank Zappa. "Question Marks (The Spot)" is introduced by a lyrical Lightcap solo. When the band enters they walk a floating line between the communicative interplay of Coleman's band and Arthur Blythe's less-structured group communication on albums such as Lenox Avenue Breakdown. The guitarist and saxophonist trade skronky fours in call-and-response. Bursting with ideas and near symbiotic ensemble play, Cline's Consentrik Quartet is a bracing statement by this wonderful group and a future-forward approach to jazz. ~ Thom Jurek

Product Details

Release Date:	03/14/2025
Label:	Blue Note Records
UPC:	0602475602088

Tracks

Disc 1

1. The Returning Angel
2. The 23
3. Surplus
4. Slipping Into Something
5. Allende
6. House of Steam
7. Inner Wall

Disc 2

8. Satomi
9. The Bag
10. Down Close
11. Question Marks (The Spot)
12. Time of No Sirens

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Nels Cline   Primary Artist