CD Review: Broken Shadows: Tim Berne, Chris Speed, Reid Anderson, Dave King

Tim Berne/ Chris Speed/ Reid Anderson/ Dave King
Broken Shadows

(Intakt)   intaktrec.bandcamp.com/album/broken-shadows (for digital album) or screwgunrecords.com/album/broken-shadows-2 (for CD orders in US)

The release of Broken Shadows marks a major collision of worlds, two of which run in close proximity to one another, yet never seem to meet. I mean, here's an album on the Swiss Intakt label by two-thirds of the Bad Plus, along with Tim Berne and Chris Speed - AND BRANFORD MARSALIS WROTE THE LINER NOTES FOR IT! Woah! 

Don't get me wrong, I think this meeting of the worlds is great. I'm just kind of surprised that the opinionated member of that family would be interested in checking this music out, let alone penning a set of liner notes about it. Kudos to you, Mr. Marsalis. 

Broken Shadows captures Berne (alto), Speed (tenor), Reid Anderson (bass) and Dave King (drums) digging into a set of works by Ornette Coleman, Julius Hemphill, Dewey Redman and Charlie Haden. The quartet began as a gathering of friends doing gigs in Brooklyn only, with no rehearsal, playing other people's music. In other words, the ground rules were very similar to what might be found at a weekly jam session in days of yore, with the additional rule of keeping the solos short and concise. (Only two tracks last longer than five minutes and one is Hemphill's "Dogon A.D.," which requires a little more time anyway.) Ten of the 12 tracks originally appeared on the vinyl-only Newvelle label in 2019 with a different running order.

With just a couple exceptions the Ornette pieces hail from his late '60s/early '70s albums like Ornette at 12, Science Fiction and Crisis. "Una Muy Bonita" and "Ecars" go back to the Atlantic days. Berne, of course, ripped through a wealth of the Ornette book on John Zorn's Spy Vs. Spy project, so he's no stranger to this work. But it's interesting to hear his distinct tone (by now, a great blend of crisp and gruff) in the middle of these bright melodies. 

Speed frequently blows in a way that sounds like he's squeezing his reed hard, letting only the minimum amount of air get through. The rugged sound recalls Dewey Redman's blend of singing and blowing on albums like Ornette at 12 or the tenor player's own "Walls-Bridges." But Speed also tightens up on Hemphill's funky "Body."

Speaking of funky, Anderson and King know how to groove on this music, when to hold back and when to lock in with the horns on the themes. Known once for interpreting other people with tongue somewhat in cheek, they take this music seriously, even as they sound like they're having a blast. For a group that doesn't believe in rehearsing, the members of Broken Shadows really know the contours of this music. Only "Una Muy Bonita" seemed to miss a bit of the groove of the original.

If this was supposed to be a casual gathering of friends, the players came with a set of discipline. Playing works by the masters can have a stigmatizing effect when you're committed to original music,  ("I really like it when you play something I know"). The quartet is careful to keep the focus on the original without resorting to fawning over the work (a pitfall with many tributes) while simultaneously revealing their own personalities. It leaves you with a greater appreciation of both the source material and the people who played it. Maybe that's what Branford appreciated about it.