Waxwing - Flicker Down (2021) [Official Digital Download 24/96]

Following on their previous Songlines release, A Bowl of Sixty Taxidermists (2015), Vancouver’s premier chamber jazz trio Waxwing (formed in 2006) returns with a flowing program of compositions and improvisations that again combines delicacy and strength, melodic beauty and textural sophistication. Theirs is a reflective kind of lyricism, often tinged with tenderness or nostalgia, but be prepared for the unexpected as pieces move though different forms and emotional states. And listen for the subtleties. Jon Bentley, who produced, mixed and sequenced the record, explains how it was put together:

“We wanted to incorporate very short improvisations into the overall song structure of the album by using them as interesting sonic intermissions or transitions. They contain different and unusual sound sources that add colour to the overall album picture and refresh the ear for the more standard composed songs. There is more production on this recording than the previous ones but hopefully it is hidden well. I started prerecording some ideas on a tank drum [an instrument created from a recycled propane tank – it can be heard on tracks 7 and 13] back in 2017 which I then brought into the studio where we improvised over top of those pre-recorded tracks. I then took those improvisations and essentially constructed hybrid improv/composed-sounding songs using Ableton Live and Serato Sample production software, which are not common to use in a trio chamber jazz setting. Many of the short pieces on the album are actually manipulated improvisations to help give them a slightly more composed feel but retaining the spontaneity and interest of the original improvisation. I wanted to have a large modern production element to this recording but ideally keeping it somewhat underlying and not overproduced. The arrangements on some songs changed dramatically from how we initially recorded them and on some they stayed true to the original. It was a long process of developing new, interesting sections through overdubbing new instruments/samples or altering the original recorded sounds at my studio. There was also a fair amount of manipulating Tony’s recorded guitar sounds and loops through various production methods. As well, I have built a large personal recorded sample library over the years that is unique to me and there is a fair amount of those samples hidden throughout the recording.”

TRACKLIST

1. Waxwing - Flicker Down
2. Waxwing - On This Day
3. Waxwing - Fweeo Walks By
4. Waxwing - Your Bet
5. Waxwing - Time Waited
6. Waxwing - A Day's Life
7. Waxwing - Montbretia Gates
8. Waxwing - Highway of Tears
9. Waxwing - Birds in Cages
10. Waxwing - Crossing Paths
11. Waxwing - Joe's Theme
12. Waxwing - Breathe
13. Waxwing - Invisible Something
14. Waxwing - Just Saying
15. Waxwing - Cloaks of Coax
16. Waxwing - Peace for Animeek
17. Waxwing - Chasing the End
18. Waxwing - Parasitic



Thanks to the Original customer.