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Northern Star People
View from the Pocket
asc cd 110
Anyone
who attended the piano-themed asc Records two-night showcase at the Vortex
in 2008 will have already heard just how great a range of sounds and textures
the duo of Finnish trumpeter Mika Myllari and keyboard player Jonathan Gee
can conjure from their various instruments and electronic gizmos.
To (fusion-period) Miles-style spearing, howling trumpet can be added alternately slurping, hard-edged or even Indian percussion sounds, keyboard washes or acoustic runs, guitar and other instrument samples, and voices (in the final track purporting to interview an alien about various snooker-related and other matters – the album as a whole is inspired by the extraordinary fluency and improvisational genius of break-builder supreme Ronnie O'Sullivan).
The result is an exhilarating album full of surprises: hip-hop beats jostle with spacy fusion, dazzling trumpet runs are underpinned by a plethora of keyboard sounds and textures, quieter moments are tellingly juxtaposed with full-blooded electronic jazz.
Aptly enough, the overall effect is similar to that experienced watching an O'Sullivan maximum break (celebrated in the album's opening track, '147'): breathtaking risks, improvisational genius, all channelled through technical assurance, provide edge-of-the-seat excitement. Warmly recommended.
