Brandon Seabrook Trio - In the Swarm (2022)

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Brandon Seabrook Trio - In the Swarm (2022)

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For In the Swarm, the avant-garde guitarist, banjoist and improviser Brandon Seabrook reunited with his trio mates Cooper-Moore and Gerald Cleaver, on diddley bow (a single-stringed American instrument characteristic of the Deep South) and drums, respectively, with whom he forms an incredibly rhythmic triangle. These experimenters have already made a few marks on contemporary jazz, and here, just like in the previous Exultations (Astral Spirits, 2020), they catch your ear with creative explosions and an unflinching experimentalism stretched to the brink of psychedelic rock, electronica, and avant-garde jazz.

Most of the tracks ignite fire, granting access to new worlds of sound that are unquestionably genuine. Take the example of the title cut, which opens the record with an enthralling krautrock rhythm, edgy low-pitched vibes, and an offbeat banjo dissertation full of rhythmic intention. There’s also “Vibrancy Yourself”, a rousing post-punk number designed with chewy, danceable diddley bow grooves and distorted guitar with different tonal qualities. Cleaver is absolutely brilliant throughout, and if he stuns with the sextuple feel proposed on “Subliminal Gaucheries” (where we almost hear a blues at the bottom of the atmospheric reverberations), then he shows pulsing power and unerring precision on “Crepuscule of Cleaver”. Ushering in this patterned grid of metrical iteration, we have glitchy, stereo beams and serrated guitar noise.

“Adrenaline Charters” may seem disjointed at first, before our ears assimilate the rich pavement that holds the finger-busting work from Seabrook on banjo. “Seething Excitations” could have been a samba if it wasn’t for the hard-kicking drum set and darker tones. “Aghastitude” is shrouded in acerbic rebelliousness as it promotes a relentless motion that fits the experimental and industrial catalogue of Laibach and Einsturzende Neubauten. There’s a delirious guitar rapture here with lots of magnetism involved. In any case, the trio’s material transcends influences and generates something unique.

~ jazztrail.net