Jeff Davis
WE SLEEP OUTSIDE
(LLCD008)
Release Date: March 30th 2010
From the opening track of We Sleep Outside, the “Bruce and Brunost Suite” grabs your attention with a strong anthem-like theme, and then sends the listener through waves of texture and sound, building layers of themes and improvisations, finally allowing the final statement to pop through. “Talk To Me” starts with a delicate melody but gradually builds to a fiery peak that allows Tony Barba to shine. The piece builds in intensity only to end with a brief repose. “Black Beard” brings many of Davis’ rock influences together, and is a natural vehicle for Jon Goldberger, while also showcasing the drummer’s power. “Fred Ullmann” is dedicated to the memory of Davis’ grandfather. A haunting, emotional composition, the piece is almost transparent, unfolding with a layering of trios, breaking up the group into opposing sections while remaining tranquil. “Slipper Hero” was composed as a series of musical interruptions, starting with piano trio, building through a bass solo, which is immediately interrupted by a series of trumpet and saxophone solos that add to a soaring theme that brings the composition abruptly to a close. “We Sleep Outside,” the title track, is coda to the album, invoking an air of open space, mysterious and dark, yet resolving the tension with a brightness that lingers.
1. Bruce And Brunost Suite
2. Talk To Me
3. Black Beard
4. Waltz
5. Fred Ullmann
6. Slipper Hero
7. We Sleep Outside
Jeff Davis - drums, percussion
Jon Goldberger - guitar
Kris Davis - piano, fender rhodes piano
Eivind Opsvik - upright bass
Tony Barba - tenor and soprano saxophone, clarinet
Kirk Knuffke - trumpet