Tom Varner - A New Planet
T
Tom Varner Music
Tom Varner is a pioneer of improvised French Horn and this is his 18th recording as bandleader. The album combines a brass quartet with the guitar of Joe Morris, a rare and powerful combination.
All 16 tracks were recorded in one day, with no overdubs, electronic effects or edits. The recorded sound is dry and intimate, reinforcing the impression of single minded spontaneity. Improvisation is free in both note choices and tempo, but always sounds considered and carefully phrased.
Alongside Varner and Morris, Stephen Haynes plays cornet and flugelhorn, Josh Roseman trombone, and Kenny Warren trumpet. All the players have known each other for many years, with the exception of Kenny Warren who joined the group on the recording day. That combination of familiarity with exploration infuses the album
All compositions are by Varner, except “From Chaos to Temple Guardian” which is by Roseman. Track lengths vary from just over 2 minutes to almost 6. The writing allows some beautifully in-tune brass chords to sit alongside note bending and extended techniques, with evocative wind noises, whistles and vocal effects. The gradual drifts between blended voicings and tense dischords have an unsettling effect which adds to the drama. The guitar has a clean electric sound, incorporating mechanical noises and slides – brilliantly inventive playing which reminded me of Derek Bailey but without the fuzz pedal. There are also multi-coloured pizzicato effects on “Joe moves us forward”.
“The New Weeds” has blistering “sheets of sound” on guitar and French horn, supported by atmospheric accompaniment from the other players. “Stephen finds a path” has song-like phrases from flugelhorn with a countermelody on guitar, while other players provide shifting drone foundations.
“Night conversations” begins with a dancing guitar prologue before the brass arrive with plungers and mutes, emphasising the close-miked recording – no long reverb or ambient sweetening here! “It's getting dark” explores guttural brass sounds, growling and grumbling like a de-constructed Ellington section. “Kenny finds the sky” has trumpet skittering around high harmonics whilst the other brass instruments and guitar create a percussive atmosphere.
Unless you're very familiar with brass instruments, it's often hard to tell the difference between trumpet and cornet, or French horn and trombone; all the players extract such varied timbres. The titles give useful clues. “Josh and Joe find water” clearly features trombone alongside some atmospheric slow-attack guitar, gradually joined in their “search” by the others. It's a standout track with a clear narrative despite the abstract sounds. “The Bursts” is vividly uncomfortable, whilst “The New Weeds” sounds exactly like you might imagine a noisy sub-soil, with plants of varied sizes competing for air and light. Closing track “Landing” flirts with breathy vocal noises and metallic guitar slides, never settling on any recognisable notes.
Overall the album reaches for a new sound world and succeeds; it contrasts slow and fast music and juggles potent brass and guitar sounds. The free improvisation is often edgy but leaves plenty of space, and achieves a persuasive musical logic.
© Stephen Godsall
Stephen Godsall is a multi-instrumentalist and composer based in Southern England. To find out more go to https://www.youtube.com/@StephenGodsall
