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Rudresh Mahanthappa — Hero Trio
(Bandcamp Whirlwind Recordings, 2020, CD / DL)

Rudresh Mahanthappa's Hero Trio — Animal Crossing
(Bandcamp Whirlwind Recordings, 2022, DL)

by Jon Davis, Published 2022-03-29

Hero Trio Cover artAnimal Crossing Cover art

With Hero Trio, saxophonist Rudresh Mahanthappa pays tribute to some of the music that has formed his art. But far from being a just set of jazz standards, the tunes featured include compositions by Stevie Wonder and June Carter as well as some lesser known pieces by Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, and Keith Jarrett, plus tunes famously interpreted by Lee Konitz and Sonny Rollins. This source material is all run through the machine that is Mahanthappa’s individual sensibility, and many of the tunes come out in wildly unexpected arrangements. The Hero Trio’s other members are François Moutin on bass and Rudy Royston on drums, and they take full advantage of not having a piano or other chordal instrument in the mix. I first encountered these three together on Bird Calls (2015), where they were joined by piano and trumpet. Moutin has a way of filling in the notes that implies far more than he’s actually playing, and anchors the low end while also providing counterpoint for Mahanthappa’s alto sax. And Royston is the perfect rhythm keeper for the music, keeping the tempo swinging and hitting the accents just right. There are some tempo changes that are coordinated amazingly well, as when they work into the ending section of “Barbados / 26-2” (a mashup of pieces by Charlie Parker and John Coltrane). “Ring of Fire,” the famous Johnny Cash hit, is given a tongue-in-cheek rendition that also honors the uniqueness of the original song. “Dewey Square” may not be one of Charlie Parker’s best known tunes, but it provides an excellent cap to this great album.

For Animal Crossing, Mahanthappa reconvened the trio for four more tunes, one of which is the theme from the video game that gives the EP its title: “Animal Crossing New Horizons.” I’d never heard this piece of music before, but it certainly works as a jazz tune in the hands of these masters. The other tracks featured are “Missouri Uncompromised” (Pat Metheny), “Give It All You Got” (Chuck Mangione), and “Faith” (George Michael), all of which are given the same radical treatment, pulled beyond their roots into Mahanthappa’s world. Rudresh Mahanthappa is one of today’s most distinctive voices on the alto sax, and his sense for melody and arrangement, as well as his wide-ranging taste, make his music notable in a world crowded with listening options.

Filed under: New releases, 2020 releases, 2022 releases

Related artist(s): Rudresh Mahanthappa

More info
http://rudreshmahanthappa-whirlwind.bandcamp.com/album/hero-trio

 

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