The sixth album by Ken Vandermark's quintet will doubtless satisfy his steady fans, but one is forced to wonder whether he's beginning to tread water. It's a very solid effort with some meaty writing and playing, but "solid" can be only a hair's breadth away from "stolid," and it's an open question as to whether or not this band is nearing that line. One problem is that Vandermark largely confines himself to one of three attacks: the storming barnburner, the noirish ballad, or the spiky, semi-free improv. Worse, this disc is, with the arg… read more
The sixth album by Ken Vandermark's quintet will doubtless satisfy his steady fans, but one is forced to wonder whether he's beginning to t… read more
The sixth album by Ken Vandermark's quintet will doubtless satisfy his steady fans, but one is forced to wonder whether he's beginning to tread water. It's a very solid ef… read more
The Vandermark 5 was formed during the spring of 1996. Since that time it has been a major outlet for the compositional and improvisational ideas of Ken Vandermark, whose thinking has been developed through years of work with groups like the NRG Ensemble, AALY, the Peter Brötzmann Chicago Tentet, the Free Music Ensemble, School Days, Free Fall, and the Territory Band. Trying to organize a small unit with the capabilities of a large ensemble, he needed and chose four exceptional musicians to join him on the project: Jeb Bishop: trombone/guitar, Kent Kessler: bass, Tim Mulvenna: drums… read more
The Vandermark 5 was formed during the spring of 1996. Since that time it has been a major outlet for the compositional and improvisational ideas of Ken Vandermark, whose thinking has been … read more
The Vandermark 5 was formed during the spring of 1996. Since that time it has been a major outlet for the compositional and improvisational ideas of Ken Vandermark, whose thinking has been developed through years of work with groups li… read more