{"id":17765,"date":"2019-12-06T05:30:17","date_gmt":"2019-12-06T10:30:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/?p=17765"},"modified":"2019-12-06T08:30:04","modified_gmt":"2019-12-06T13:30:04","slug":"free-planet-radio-in-pursuit-of-modern-jazz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/2019\/12\/06\/free-planet-radio-in-pursuit-of-modern-jazz\/","title":{"rendered":"Free Planet Radio: In Pursuit of Modern Jazz"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Free Planet Radio debuted in 2001, the Asheville-based trio was often described as a world music group. And while by definition that label casts a wide net, it was never quite expansive enough to get to the heart of what Free Planet Radio does. The three creatively adventurous musicians have always explored many styles, from ambient to folk. And on its latest release, Pursuit<\/i>, the trio slips comfortably into the jazz idiom, doing so without leaving its trademark world vibe behind.<\/p>\n

Multi-instrumentalist Chris Rosser plays dotar, guitar, melodica, oud and piano. And on Pursuit<\/i>, he applies those instruments in a direction wholly unlike Free Planet Radio’s previous release. \u201cStillness<\/i> was more of a meditation-focused, very kind of ambient record,\u201d he explains. \u201cThis one <\/i>is kind of the opposite of that.\u201d The jazzy Pursuit<\/i> is mostly upbeat and groove-oriented. \u201cA lot of notes and a lot of soloing,\u201d Rosser says with a laugh.<\/p>\n

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Photo by Sandlin Gaither<\/p><\/div>\n

But what might at first glance seem a stylistic left turn is really very much in keeping with the musically wide-open spirit of the trio. Percussionist River Guerguerian points out that the record before Stillness<\/i> was The Global Symphony Project<\/i>. \u201cThat really focused heavily on world fusion, combining that with a string quartet chamber ensemble.\u201d<\/p>\n

It might be overstatement to characterize the three musicians of Free Planet Radio \u2013 Rosser, Guerguerian and bassist Eliot Wadopian \u2013 of being creatively restless. It’s more a case of them not observing (or accepting) the arbitrary boundaries between different styles. \u201cOn our first three albums, we felt like each album had to represent everything<\/i> we do,\u201d says Rosser. \u201cAnd now that we\u2019re five albums in, we feel we can do albums that focus on one<\/i> aspect of what we do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Guerguerian notes that Pursuit<\/i> was inspired in part by a North Carolina Arts Council grant Rosser won last year. \u201cIt’s a big<\/i> grant,\u201d he says. \u201cOnce you get it, you can do what you want. And that helped to inspire Chris to compose a bunch of stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n

And that \u201cstuff\u201d displays the influence of some of jazz’s greatest artists. \u201cI’m a big Thelonious Monk fan,\u201d Rosser says. \u201cHe\u2019s one of those artists who transcends form.\u201d Two of the songs on Pursuit<\/i> \u2013 \u201cMonkey Stride\u201d and \u201cFree Sphere,\u201d the latter a tip of the hat to Monk, whose middle name was Sphere \u2013 were directly inspired by listening to the pianist’s work. \u201cI think our natural tendency is more toward modal, modern jazz than ‘smooth jazz,’\u201d Rosser says.<\/p>\n

But Free Planet Radio’s latest album still carries forth the sounds and textures that won the trio its dedicated following. Rosser characterizes \u201cThe Old Country\u201d as \u201cMiddle Eastern meets Appalachian.\u201d And Guerguerian describes \u201cBlue Ark\u201d \u2013 a track that features guest artist Duncan Wickel on cello and violin \u2013 as \u201csomewhere between Algerian or Tunisian with a French flavor.\u201d That sort of creative cross-cultural combination has been a thread running through Free Planet Radio’s music since the group’s 2004 debut, New Bedouin Dance<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Another of the hallmarks of the trio’s music is its use of polyrhythms and unusual time signatures in a way that somehow doesn’t feel alien to listeners raised on a diet of 4\/4 pop music. \u201cSometimes Chris will have a groove in 4, and I\u2019ll try to play a group of 7s over it,\u201d Guerguerian says. \u201cBut we don’t approach it academically, like ‘Okay, today we’re going to write a groove in 11.’<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to feel that a song has a ‘pocket,’\u201d Guerguerian says. But he admits that it’s sometimes amusing when people dance to Free Planet Radio’s music. \u201cSometimes we start these grooves, and people start to get up and dance.\u201d he says with a chuckle. \u201cBecause it just feels groovy. They start moving and they’re like, ‘Oh, wait a minute. My foot is on the upbeat when it should be at the downbeat!’ It happens all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

As natural as the jazz vibe of Pursuit<\/i> may be, expect something different when Free Planet Radio makes its next album. \u201cThe next one will have a theme, too,\u201d Guerguerian says. \u201cAs a listener, I think it could be interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n

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