BLISTERS: GILBERT ISBIN & JOE FONDA
REVIEWS
ACOUSTIC GUITAR WORKSHOP.COM UK) by Steve Elliott
Gilbert Isbin pushes the boundaries of what is possible on the acoustic guitar. "Blisters" is a daring atonal and rhythmic encounter on the boundaries of music. Hypnotic, exhillarating, surprising, Blisters is right up there in the vanguard of the avant garde. If you like your musical stylings out there on the edge, check out this new offering from Gilbert Isbin and the great American bassist, Joe Fonda.
ALL MUSIC GUIDE (USA) Glenn Astarita, (July 2003Knowing the track record of bassist Joe Fonda (United States) and guitarist Gilbert Isbin (Belgium), it should come as no surprise that these modernists would turn in a creative duo session. Isbin's acoustic guitar discography features reconstructions of rocker Nick Drake's compositions amid avant/folk-based recordings and much more; Fonda co-leads the Fonda-Stevens jazz group, amid his affiliations with world music artists and his first-call session status for an assortment of modern jazz-based endeavors. On this outing, they stretch the sounds and capabilities of their acoustic instruments to the hilt. An extremely rhythmic endeavor, the musicians tap their axes, de-tune strings, and collaborate for a sequence of twisted themes. The listener will be treated to an assortment of countermelodies and free-form excursions on pieces such as "This Longing," "Check Please," and the remaining 11 works. Here, rules are meant to be broken, as the artists' carefree and sometimes humorous approach might be akin to the inventiveness of toddlers attempting to re-engineer their toys.
rating: 4/5
As soon as you hear Gilbert's guitar(s), you'll know where th' CD title came from... lightning-fast, high-energy picking, & Fonda's double-bass drives the pace to th' kind of frenzy that only raw talent can accommodate. The duo keep up a running background scat on quite a few of the pieces, though you have to listen pretty closely to hear their chanting. Fans of players like Ernesto Diaz-Infante will relate to this style immediately! Rather than epic compositions, most of the pieces are quite short (under 5 minutes, except for one), so it (actually) makes for a wonderful listen. Gilbert is from Belgium, Joe from the U.S., but they're definitely soul-mates with a clear understanding of the directions their music is traveling towards... subtle oblivion & energetic excellence. If you're looking for full-blown orchestral, or "pop" jazz, you'll hit "eject" right away... but if you love strings that vibrate & move the strings of your heart, you will have to have "Blisters". The keyword here is subtle... but, nothing is obscured, the recording has captured ev'ry moment, with no need to screech/whistle/pop to cover anything over. I enjoyed this greatly, & listened to it (at least) 5 times through before I felt I had "absorbed" (a part of) their vision. This gets a HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for fans of string-based improvisation.
ALL ABOUT JAZZ, US, 2003 by Jerry D'SouzaJoe Fonda and Gilbert Isbin, partners in time, create vivid imagery via the many manifestations of sound they take their instruments through, over, and across. What is more remarkable is that they do it with an astute aesthetic: there is no howl or cry in their music. What they have is rhythm, a pulse and a kinetic energy that constantly bristles.
The compositions are credited to Fonda and Isbin, but the heartbeat lies in the improvisation that gives the music its depth and character. It has a spontaneity that rises and endears. One never knows where the two are headed. In this lies both the delight and the lure. And it does not matter whether they are on an exuberant roll or are locked in quiet communication.
One of the characteristics of this album is that Fonda plays the melodies while Isbin, for the most part, thunks the body of the guitar, rustles the strings and slaps and slides, but adds enough dynamics to make the tunes vibrant. The first song, describing a cycle of varied time, opens on the funky beat of the bass before Isbin comes in to do his dance on the guitar and help shape the ebb and tide of structure. Fonda's arco, always a strong element that shows droves of imagination, gets a particularly virile workout on "The House of J," the roiling intensity fuelling chunky chord work from Isbin. The bowing that ushers in "Fonda" is mellow, a molten warmth essaying its presence and shimmering in a chamber music-like feel. The artists constantly tweak the sonic palette, the shades of sound and metre making for an elevating experience. Free music and unabashed rhythm drive the blues away.
Cadence (USA), August 2003, Jason Bivin“… Fonda is one of the most exuberant musicians – and people – on the scene. He’s got a near boundless energy and curiosity as a player, so it’s no surprise that eventually he’d record some duets with a guitarist. Isbin was unfamiliar to me prior to hearing this disc. He plays acoustic exclusively, and tends to work in a slashing chordal style that is usually very percussive (he often uses the body of the guitar in this fashion too). His approach brings out some of Fonda’s most forceful playing. The disc begins with woody tapping on the instruments’ bodies, and scritchy-scratchy strings. For the most part, ‘Yes Day’ is a very quiet piece, with the rubbing of strings producing sounds akin to saxophone extended techniques. Things get a bit more robust over subsequent tracks, with Isbin’s chiming chords (nerve)jangling and a bit similar to Bruce Eisenbeil’s recent stuff) over Fonda’s muscular playing, or squeaking arco ghost tones hovering amid gentle lyric wanderings. The two play very well together, whether on the gritty pieces or on a near ballad like ‘The Longing’, where there is great integration between Fonda’s songlike arco and Isbin’s framing chords. There’s even more of this mood on ‘Fonda’ – by far the disc’s longest track – on which the bassist really stretches with the bow while Isbin keeps time by thumping on the guitar body. There are moments of really good intensity but the track does also ramble (and there is some frankly bizarre whistling – Isbin also warbles a bit painfully on ‘Yeah!’). The disc is fine overall, though it’s slightly compromised by Isbin’s apparent reluctance to vary his approach a whole lot (hey man, how about some picking once in a while?). Worth checking out”.
Impro Jazz, France, feb. 2004 Philippe Renaud“Il faut citer tout de suite le troisième membre du groupe, ingénieur du son Jean-Marc Foussat. L’évidence de sons frappe immédiatement : les machines ne font pas ça toutes seules, il faut une oreille. Celle de Foussat accueille tous les sons et les organise en musique. Fonda et Isbin ne sont pas pour rien dans cette réussite. Mais la qualité de la captation leur permet de jouer aux marges de la musique, sachant qu’ils seront entendus. Leur musique se présente comme l’inspiration de celui qui se prépare à plonger, à sauter ou à courir, comme le regard avant l’épreuve. Cela lui donne ampleur et gravité sans lourdeur. Le titre Blisters signifie « ampoules », ces petites douleurs entre la chair et la peau qui naissent du frottement avec les choses. Si on s’interroge sur la pertinence, il oblige à écouter autrement : la violence que mettent les deux musiciens à manier leurs instruments ne ressort pas à l’écoute, comme si la prise de son de Foussat à la fois prenait le tout de ces sons et agissait sur eux comme un filtre révélant l’essentiel. La violence de cette musique ressemble à celle d’un sculpteur qui frappe la pierre ou d’un peintre qui balaie sa toile, elle n’est que dans le geste, liée à la résistance de la matière. La voix à peine articulée de Fonda se mêle souvent à son jeu et à ce qu’Isbin tire de sa guitare classique à cordes de nylon. Rien à voir ici avec la caricature d’instrument délicat qu’on en a souvent, c’est la guitare qu’on en a souvent, c’est la guitare du flamenco ou des traditions tziganes qui transparaît, non au travers du style mais dans la vigueur de l’abord. Le trio fait ici œuvre de composition, c’est un grand disque. On peut ajouter que le digipack à trois volets est une belle réussite : ces photos en noir & blanc, sobres mais parlantes, accompagnent parfaitement la musique.”
ALL ABOUT JAZZ, ItalyBlisters del duo acustico Joe Fonda e Gilbert Isbin [Jazz'Halo] documenta l'incontro ben riuscito fra due musicisti che si frequentano e si stimano. Fonda 蠵n contrabbassista americano, ben noto negli ambienti dell'avanguardia, fantasioso e impavido, per nulla preoccupato di scavalcare immaginari limiti posti al suo strumento. Dopo una breve esperienza alla corte del trombettista Leo Smith, tato il contrabbassista preferito da Anthony Braxton, che lo ha utilizzato a lungo negli anni novanta. Parallelamente ha portato avanti un suo gruppo (a volte un quartetto, a volte un quintetto) che vede come co-leader il pianista Michael Jeffry Stevens [per leggere la recensione del loro album The Healing Il chitarrista belga Isbin 蠤ecisamente meno noto, anche se ha gi asciato tracce discografiche ben precise ed abbondanti (ricordiamo un suo lavoro di ricostruzione in chiave d'avanguardia delle composizioni di Nick Drake).
I due affrontano una dozzina di loro composizioni che si legano bene insieme e che sono dominate da un approccio ritmico irriverente ed accentuato, spesso il solo elemento strutturale attorno al quale i due intrecciano i loro burst creativi. Gli strumenti vengono percossi, accarezzati, a volte persino torturati, alla ricerca di situazioni originali che sappiano tenere ben desto un dialogo espressivo che riesce a trovare numerosi momenti convincenti. Qua e lmergono alcune slabbrature un po' fastidiose (come quando uno dei due si mette a fischiettare in maniera francamente imbarazzante) ma sono i rischi che spesso la musica improvvisata ostretta a correre. Diciamo che un filo di rigore in pi?n sarebbe stato sprecato.
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"Le note di copertina del disco, seppur con una veste grafica elegante e con delle belle fotografie in bianco e nero, non danno molte indicazioni per cui sappiamo solo che Joe Fonda e Gilbert Isbin vengono dal Belgio. Ma ciò che conta è la loro musica ed il loro modo di vedere e sentire attraverso i loro strumenti: il contrabbasso e la chitarra acustica. Con solo questi due strumenti e senza l'ausilio della voce non ci sono molte strade musicali, se poi i nostri scelgono il radicalismo più estremo e l'improvvisazione più totale ci rendiamo conto che il CD non è dei più facili e merita un ascolto ponderato e senza pregiudizi. Fonda e Isbin si riallacciano a quel filone europeo di musica senza confini che fa della musica d'avanguardia, più che il jazz d'improvvisazione, il suo manifesto estetico: è indubbiamente una musica spigolosa, senza confini melodici od armonici in cui la struttura del brano nasce sul divenire e nella più ampia libertà esecutiva. Una testimonianza interessante e particolare per un genere ed una espressione musicale che fa parte della nostra cultura del nuovo millennio."
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