BENOÎT DELBECQ — Benoit Delbecq and Fred Hersch Double Trio : Fun House (review)

BENOÎT DELBECQ — Benoit Delbecq and Fred Hersch Double Trio : Fun House album cover Album · 2013 · Avant-Garde Jazz Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
snobb
Benoît Delbecq is a classically trained French pianist, and one of the brightest figures in the modern avant-garde scene in Paris. On some of his previous works, he already demonstrated a tasteful and elegant mix of contemporary classical music, avant-garde jazz improvs and aerial ambient sound. "Fun House" is all that and much more - first of all, the music recorded on here is played by the quite rare format of a double trio.

Besides Benoît Delbecq's usual collaborators; bassist Jean-Jacques Avenel and drummer Steve Arguelles, you also hear the adventurous trio of American pianist Fred Hersch (containing the excellent rhythm section of bassist Mark Helias and drummer Gerry Hemingway) playing simultaneously. This album's music is still pure Delbecq - easily accessible from the first impression, in fact, it's also knotty and quirky enough to attract even most adventurous listeners as well. Also, it is not far from what you would expect from a double trio - not too intensive or dense, but very aerial and elegant, even fragile in moments. The interplay between the two trios is excellent, and it's great to hear how Hersh's trio gives some tactful, yet adventurous jazzy support to the more third-stream rooted Delbecq trio.

The music on "Fun House" varies between classical, avant-garde, relaxed free-form well-framed jazz and ECM-type ambience, as well as some more traditional jazz roots (more or less the three first components are all presented in equal proportions). Probably it's symptomatic that 'House" closes with a psychedelic version of Ornette Coleman's "Lonely Woman".

Overall, this is a very modern well balanced mix between European classical and American jazz avant-garde traditions, with touches of non-elevator ambient sound. "Fun House" is one of the best examples of a continuing evolution in jazz.

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Jazz Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

JMA TOP 5 Jazz ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
A Love Supreme Post Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners
Kind of Blue Cool Jazz
MILES DAVIS
Buy this album from our partners
The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady Progressive Big Band
CHARLES MINGUS
Buy this album from our partners
Blue Train Hard Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners
My Favorite Things Hard Bop
JOHN COLTRANE
Buy this album from our partners

New Jazz Artists

New Jazz Releases

Snakeoil : Snakeoil Ok Avant-Garde Jazz
TIM BERNE
Buy this album from MMA partners
Poetry of Place (from the exhibit by painter Karen Allen) Jazz Related Improv/Composition
CHRIS DINGMAN
Buy this album from MMA partners
Hiwar World Fusion
ALEPH QUINTET
Buy this album from MMA partners
Stefan Keune, Steve Noble, Dominic Lash : Black Box Avant-Garde Jazz
STEFAN KEUNE
Buy this album from MMA partners
Satoko Fujii Tokyo Trio : Dream A Dream Avant-Garde Jazz
SATOKO FUJII
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Jazz Online Videos

Satoko Fujii Tokyo Trio Dream a Dream
SATOKO FUJII
js· 22 hours ago
Wojciech Jachna Squad - Ad Astra (Promo Teaser)
WOJCIECH JACHNA
snobb· 4 days ago
Nitty Gritty
RUSS SPIEGEL
js· 4 days ago
Never in a 100.000.000 Dreams
SUPERSISTER
js· 4 days ago
Love is a Fire that Burns Unseen
PETER MADSEN
js· 5 days ago
More videos

New JMA Jazz Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Jazz News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed