The Michigan Daily ,Records ARTS Monday, January 20, 1986 Page5 ueso 2A'n (p Ku an mgt~ tcsttge zd~ay ja1 9 aW e p and'O Knt° EM;0°" Pmicl 5 l" pt;D~o Slider-Glenn- A Whispered Warning (ITI) Despite their fine instrumental abilities, the members of this synth- oriented fusion quintet consistently fail to excite their listener due to sim- plistic, repetitive melodies and highly uneven production. ' As composers of the album's eight tracks, bassist Dann Glenn and keyboardist Dan Slider seem to forget that fusion's marriage of jazz and ;rock demands the retention of elements from both genres, including the complete-sounding, tuneful imelodies inherent in pop music. In ef- fect, the composers have assembled eight catchy, simple riffs, each drawn-out with impressive soloing to approximately four minutes in length. For instance, a tight horn section repeats to the point of boredom the basic four-note theme of the upbeat title track. I Equally tiresome is the seemingly unceasing two-measure synth line on "Party of One," a track which ends, appropriately enough, with the sound ,of a flushing toilet. * Somewhat courageously, the liner notes invite the listener to name the purposely untitled final track, a poin- tless, chordally infantile funk outing over which tenor saxophonist Bob Sandman trades solos with guitarist 'Barry Coates. My choice for the title? :low about "Defused Fusion?" In addition to the directionless, un- finished sound of these melodies, A Whispered Warning suffers from poor mixing; talented drummer Nick Vin- cent is far too loud, causing many fine solos to sound faded and secon- dary, while virtually drowning bassist Glenn. Slider-Glenn overcomes many of these problems, however, on the seething "Firefight," marked by an urgent "Birdland" high-hat beat and an assured, grooving bass line. Meanwhile, Coates unleashes a sweetly distorted, blistering guitar solo a la Holdsworth before Sandman races through beautiful tenor im- provisations. Here, the mix sounds unusually even and the melody seem insignificant as the band charges ahead with intensity and im- provisational flash. Unfortunately, less agressive num- bers serve to highlight repetitive melodies and problematic production, thus quickly losing the listener's in- terest; in fact, nowhere on the album does the band approach the im- passioned, compelling feel of "Firefight." In short, Slider-Glenn wastes excep- tional musicianship on melodically unambitious, often poorly mixed material, holding one's interest only when a weak tune is obscured by feverish performances. -Joe Acciaioli *Seventh Avenue - Heads Up (ITI) In defiance of the growing popularity and profits enjoyed by jazz ,fusion artists, this abundantly talen- ed Los Angeles quintet glides through seven well-conceived tunes that are strongly influenced by young Miles Davis and Art Blakey. Goodbye, Hello The motion of leaving; remem- bering, catching up, gliding Seeing our way, feelingly; a vision of warmth In an uneasy drop of sweat, trickling annoyingly To the end of my exhausted nose, Until dropping with a twitch, relievingly, to the chilling bathroom floor, Spread out to the cold in its own nakedness, waiting for warmth. While the individual performances here are superb, Seventh Avenue ex- cels for its ability to function as a tight unit; Heads Up boasts arrangements that, like graceful waves, swell and resolve in their levels of instrumen- tation and dynamics. This effect emerges most noticeably on the title track and "Ebullition," both excellent com- positions. On the former, after a rousing six measure introduction by the entire group, the feel alters drastically as bassist John Patitucci and tenor saxophonist Bob Sheppard alone present the tune's subdued theme, a toe-tapping unison melody. Later, the band swings beautifully with Sheppard and trumpeter Bob Ojeda soloing emotionally over a medium-tempoed walking bass line. Still more impressive, however, is the arrangement found on the edgy, potent "Ebullition," composed by pianist Tom Garvin. Full of agile changes in feel and structure, the track begins with a rifling tenor solo driven to the brink of (but never losing) control by Mike Stephans' fiery drumming. This pace fades long enough for the mellow, pensive theme to be heard, only to surge forward again with Ojeda and Sheppard blasting harmonically the punchy melody. In less than seven minutes, Seventh Avenue travels deftly through quiet piano improvisation, a wonderful swing tempo, and the original supercharged straight beat over which each member eventually solos. To its credit, the band executes these changes in an unforced, fluid manner, a testimony of the members' familiarity with, and understanding of, the material. Elsewhere, the arrangements are no less effective, providing plenty of space within which the soloists can stretch-out, particularly on slower selections like "Randi's Song," and "Soul Dance." On the latter, Garvin solos thoughtfully, never attempting to overplay within the sparse, slow- swinging arrangement. Indeed, the inspired soloing on Heads Up, through often stunning, avoids overstepping the conceptual borders of any given tune. Despite the band's remarkable togetherness, the album is flawed by poor production, like the glaringly weak miking of drummer Stephans. Typically, little financial support is available to new acoustic bop groups, a prime indication of the lack of respect our country bears for its only original art form. Fortunately, Seventh Avenue rises above such technical limitations with urgent playing and fine compositions. On this self-produced effort, Seven- th Avenue strikes the listener as an intuitively-communicating, singularly- purposed group of fine musicians, of- fering a nod to their pure jazz heritage as well as promise for the genre's future. -Joe A cciaioli Join the U-M WOMEN'S GLEE CLUB! 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