Tomas Fujiwara's Triple Double - March On

Tomas Fujiwara's Triple Double

March On

tomasfujiwara.bandcamp.com/album/march-on

A set of outtakes from a previously released album often connotes alternate versions of what appeared on the previous release or music that, for any number of reasons, didn’t make the cut the first time around. March On, a digital-only follow-up to Triple Double’s March, has a little of both of those qualities, but they’re executed in a different way. 

Lead by drummer Tomas Fujiwara, Triple Double lives up to its name with three instruments played two musicians each: drums (Fujiwara, Gerald Cleaver), guitar (Mary Halvorson, Brandon Seabrook) and trumpet/cornet (Ralph Alessi, Taylor Ho Bynum). Three tracks consist of brief improvisations edited from alternate takes of two different March tracks. “Smoke” and “Silhouettes” lift fragments (one lasts 45 seconds, the other 1:13) of guitarists Mary Halvorson and Brandon Seabrook playing duets in “Silhouettes In Smoke” and uses them to bookend this EP. “Smoke,” the opener, builds from a single note and feels prettier, while “Silhouettes” closes the disc in a foreboding mood, coming across with the tight brevity of a film cue. “Docile Fury Duet” (from “Docile Fury Ballad”) features Seabrook skronking all over his axe while Bynum wails and growls in the background. 

The title track comes acts as the centerpiece of the release. The group recorded this extended track of free improvisation, which Fujiwara planned to cut into interludes between the proper tunes on March. The results of the 31-minute performance convinced the drummer to keep it intact. His feeling is understandable because it presents a good example of how group improvisation can work. No one steps on their bandmates’ feet. One horn executes a low growl, while the other wails high. The drums stir up a brew together. After Seabrook bangs out a rough chord, Halvorson does the same, with a clean tone for contrast. Even when things get chaotic, a sense of fun carries it. Things even settle down for a gentle moment halfway through, giving everyone a chance to listen to the space before proceeding. And the energy continues.