Easley first came to acclaim with the East Coast roots/blues group
Hot Toddy, earning Maple Blues and ECMA trophies. He also developed a
parallel career in jazz that now has his emphasis, most notably in a
Halifax trio with Geoff Arsenault and Bill Stevenson, and as the go-to
guy when acoustic bass is needed. Now he has this new project with some
of the stalwarts of Halifax jazz, in a two-guitar, drums and bass
quartet. Mark Adam is the percussionist, while Geordie Haley and Kevin
Brunkhorst cover the six strings.
These
are all Easley compositions, and mirroring his background, the
all-instrumental album certainly falls under a jazz heading, but has
lots of elements from other genres peaking through. There are
atmospheric moments, including the first couple of minutes of opening
track The Dreaming, bowed bass over soft waves before cymbals help find a
meditative theme. Thicker grooves and rich guitar tones can be found on
other tracks, yet there's certainly a contemplative feel across the
album, not ambient but definitely dreamy.
There's
lots of fine interplay between the guitars, bass and drums, very
controlled, not in a scripted way, but collaboratively, plenty of rises
and falls. The guitars are for the most part pretty sweet, but every so
often things get a little dirty, a hint of noise and intensity to set a
top bar of intensity. All in all, it's really ear-friendly and melodic,
and probably great to enjoy live. That's handy, as there are album
launch shows happening in N.S. and N.B. over the next while:
Friday, Oct. 26 - Halifax - 1313 Hollis Street
Saturday, Oct. 27 - Glen Haven, N.S. - Paul's Hall
Friday, Nov. 23 -Saint John, N.B. - BMO Studio Theatre
Saturday, Nov. 24 - St. Andrews, NB - Sunbury Shores (1 pm)
Saturday, Nov. 24 - Fredericton - Wilser's Room (8 pm)
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