Live Shows 2:

Scott Herren: APT, June 5th 2007, 1 set

Stumbling upon Scott Herren (aka Prefuse 73) spinning at New York's APT was a nice surprise. Herren is known today as one of the best electronic artists around. Although he is most known for his electro-hip-hop outfit as Prefuse 73, he also dons various other monikers for his wide array of side projects and collaborations. Among his other projects include albums under the names Piano Overlord (pure electronic experimentation), Delarosa and Asora (frenetic techno), and Savath and Savalas (brazilian electronic music). But on June 5th at APT, Herren was working as Prefuse 73, and spun his own brand of hip hop. Whereas his own albums tend to be a mix of his own electronic music spun around with hip hop beats and sometimes guest MCs on top, his live set made it a lot easier to see his influences in the genre. He began spinning some random records and slowly moved into remixing some acapellas including one great MF Doom remix. When the set began he seemed to be moving out of what the previous DJ had been spinning, but by the end of his set had transformed the music into his original style. Herren's live set displayed his skills of developing his own sound even when just spinning records, and added another side to an already multi-faceted artist.

7/10

Live Shows

While in NYC for the summer, I've been trying to check out as much of the scene as possible. I thought this would be a good place to vent about these shows.

Billy Hart Quartet: June 2nd, 2007 at the Village Vanguard w/ Mark Turner, Ben Street, and Ethan Iverson

This was the first show I saw in the city, the night after I arrived. The Vangaurd is definitely one of the best venues in which to see jazz in the city (if not one of the most expensive). Not only does it attract some of the best acts around, it doesn't get clogged up with too many mainstream acts like the Blue Note or Iridium. Also, the atmosphere and sound is great. This group is one of the hottest on the scene right now. From what I've heard, the group was formed collectively, but the younger members decided to name it after the veteran drummer. Iverson is mostly known for his work in The Bad Plus, and Street for his work with Kurt Rosenwinkel. Mark Turner is turning into a young veteran, having worked with artists such as Rosewinkel, Joshua Redman, Lee Konitz, John Pattitucci, James Moody and Ryan Kisor. Hart is definitely the true veteran in the group. He is one of those drummers that seems to turn up endlessly on albums old and new. It would be hard to name people in the business he hasn't worked with, but here is a short list of those he has: Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, McCoy Tyner, Stan Getz, John Scofield, Paul Bley, and Dave Holland. Hart's own albums have been solid efforts, but his most recent with this quartet is one of his most engaging. Their set began with an Iverson blues, Mellow B. The way the quartet manages to balance the tradition and contemporary playing is astounding. While you hear all that you would expect from a traditional blues, they are still managing to play as fresh and free as possible. Hart's rhythms are tight and loose at the same time. Street was especially on point. He displayed a fondness for vamps and his bass lines, like Hart's playing, were at once in the pocket and rhythmically free. Iverson and Turner were the chief soloists. Turner seems to be in constant study, his style ever-changing. His knowledge of the tradition is a basis for his incredibly modern harmony. Iverson, classically trained, never ceases to create a dramatic solo; he works particularly well interacting with Hart. The set was made up entirely of originals (some of which were based off standards, like Turner's new melody over "Giant Steps"), most of which were Hart's. The set's high point was definitely the first half, with the energy high. Slower tunes finished out the set, but not without a large amount of energy. The group interplay was the essence of the show. The quartet seems to connect on another level, and that's what makes this group one of the best on the scene.

7/10