River Silver is double bassist
Michel Benita's debut as a leader for
ECM. He has recorded for the label previously with
Andy Sheppard's groups.
Benita formed
Ethics in 2010, with the express purpose of wedding jazz to his love of global folk traditions. The lineup has been constant: guitarist/electronicist
Eivind Aarset (with whom he plays in
Sheppard's quartet), longtime associates
Matthieu Michel on flügelhorn and
Philippe Garcia on drums, and
Mieko Miyazaki on koto. This is their second album; their first, 2010's Drastic, was issued by Zig Zag Territoires. Perhaps the most remarkable element in this band's sound is that its most "exotic" instrument doesn't play that role. It is harmonically integral to the body of these compositions, though
Miyazaki is given plenty of improvisational space.
Aarset's role -- prevalent on recordings he's appeared on in recent years -- is primarily one of a colorist; he clearly thrives in it.
Michel's flügelhorn is the primary melodic instrument in much of this mix; his songlike approach to improvisation adds complexity as well as emotional depth. The music is dreamy and warm, but not necessarily all that abstract. "Back from the Moon" commences with snare and an electronic drone. It is swept into presence via strummed koto before
Michel articulates the melody and
Benita adds small melodic counter-flourishes. "Off the Coast" is rockist in places with
Aarset's brooding electric guitar riff. He follows by doubling the melody with
Michel; his guitar creates a bridge between the structure and improvisation.
Miyazaki's koto is played more like a gourd banjo here, often touching on folk-blues. Her own "Haichi Gatsu" is almost hummable in the introduction before it unfolds as layers of harmonic interplay between
Benita and the koto player evolve.
Garcia adds a folk dance rhythmic vamp. "Yeavering" by Northumbrian piper
Kathryn Tickell is ushered into being by
Benita's bassline before
Michel offers its lovely, haunted melody with a singer's sense of phrasing. His "voice" is highlighted by the koto's plucked chords and soft electric guitar effects. "Toonari" is a wonderfully spooky, spacy labyrinth. Tonally and harmonically, it has been influenced by
Jon Hassell's "Fourth World" aesthetic, but its group improvisation is dynamic, owned by
Ethics. A fine, unhurried bass solo introduces "Lykken," an art song by Eyvind Alnæs.
Michel's articulation of the melody is pastoral and tender;
Miyazaki's koto fills add poignancy while
Garcia's cymbals whisper on the margins. There are moments on
River Silver that don't really amount to much -- the aimlessly wandering tone poem that is the title track, or the equally unfocused closer "Snowed In" -- but they don't distract from the abundant pleasure found elsewhere. (To be fair, these tunes would likely fare better in a concert setting.)
Michel Benita and
Ethics have found found a unique voice on
River Silver; it is beguiling, seductive, and resonant. ~ Thom Jurek