With simultaneous new releases last week, two of the most original, creative voices in jazz seem to have found their artistic home.
Brad Mehldau and The Bad Plus have settled into comfortable relationships with pop music. Drawing influences and material from that, um, more-profitable genre, these gentlemen deconstruct pop, delivering the rearranged form as new sounds with familiar hauntings. But familiarity is more than just a shadowy characteristic in the overall mood of both groups’ new releases — in fact, Anything Goes and Give, respectively, could easily be collections of lost tracks from the bands’ previous albums.
Brad Mehldau has enjoyed a winding career that makes Anything Goes (his latest album) sound like a safe return to familiar terrain. Back in his time-tested trio with bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Jorge Rossier, Mehldau delivers a series of airy yet virtuosic standards and, yes, the requisite Radiohead cover. Anything Goes recalls earlier Art of the Trio releases, except this time Mehldau’s compositions are absent from the mix. Rather than lament, let us praise this pianist’s new focus on interpretation and arrangement as he delivers an album refreshingly free of new art.
The beauty of this recording originates in the myth of new art. “No man is an island,” John Donne wrote in the 17th century, observing the interconnectedness that makes every human creation an extension of previous efforts. Depressing at first glance, this creative dynamic reveals nuanced variations in human perception that make artistic reinterpretation more enlightening (if not as breathtaking) than supposedly new work.
Anything Goes focuses on artistic reinterpretation in the purest sense. Collecting material from a variety of sources, including standard jazz literature, Radiohead and even Paul Simon, Mehldau has assembled an album that is consistent and conscious. The progression of songs is thoughtful and logical and the overall mood is unwavering, as if the group had carefully crafted each piece from scratch to fit together. In reality, the only crafting was in the arrangement and harmonic interpretation of these songs. And fitting “Still Crazy After All These Years” next to “Nearness of You” is no easy task.
There is nothing new to see on Mehldau’s album, but this is not necessarily a bad thing. The venerable trio reignites old flames, focusing its creative energies on the careful reconstruction of material from across genres. And while the Mehldau Trio is returning home on Anything Goes, The Bad Plus is simply finishing what they started with their latest release, Give.
Give is remarkably similar in both composition and style to The Bad Plus’ acclaimed major-label debut, These Are The Vistas. Both albums feature the pounding, chunky union of Reid Anderson’s surprisingly punchy upright bass, Evan Iverson’s heavy left hand and David King’s dry drum kit. Give retains the hectic spark of their earlier work but loses a bit of energy and intensity in the process of tightening up the arrangements and (so it sounds) rehearsing more. This is a common problem for any band looking to follow up on a well-received debut, but it doesn’t keep The Bad Plus from putting together an album that confidently extends the creative basis established on These Are The Vistas.
Like Mehldau, Iverson and company are exploring the nuances of interpretation and diversity of perception on their newest release. Rather than step onto totally new ground, The Bad Plus presents a refined version of itself on Give. The style and production are unchanged, which is a fitting decision for an album that follows the same formula (mostly originals, with a few jazz standards and rock tunes) in its choice of material.
If “Smells Like Teen Spirit” was the brilliant shining star of The Bad Plus’ artistic model on These Are The Vistas, then the group’s rendition of “Ironman” is the neighboring solar system on Give. The adventurous romp through this Black Sabbath classic demonstrates the trio’s creative approach to musical reconstruction and, for most listeners, an accessible view of what the group is all about. Multiple-layered piano tracks and huge bass combine with King’s astonishing drum chops to rock so hard that Ozzy would be proud. The group’s cohesion really shines here, as the musicians dramatically slow and pause before each section’s downbeat, landing at last together in impressive fashion. Harmonic reinterpretation is the star at the tune’s end, as Iverson and Anderson venture into a major-tinted version of the riff before floating off into a peaceful interlude that gives way to a haunting minor chord that is sustained through the fadeout.
The Brad Mehldau Trio and The Bad Plus are two of modern jazz’s very best. And along with Norah Jones, Harry Connick, Jr., and a few others, these artists are carving out a special place for jazz music in our pop world, using mainstream music as both a springboard for creativity and a stepping-stone into new audiences.
Anything Goes, by the Brad Mehldau Trio. Released Feb. 24, 2004, on Warner Brothers.
Grade: A/B
Give, by The Bad Plus. Released on Apple’s iTunes Music Store Feb. 24, 2004. Official release date: March 9, 2004, on Columbia.
Grade: B
