With a title like "Nada" one expects some dire existentialist tale of the abyss, or a somber Hemingway-esque complaint. What we actually get is something more along the lines of the whimsical Shakespearean poetry of Much Ado About Nothing, since alto saxophonist Carrier and his drumming co-creator Lambert offer up some very beautiful, peaceful reflections of the theme the title alludes to.
What this amounts to is music that sounds like it was improvised on the spot — ergo, the "nada" of the title may allude to the nothing that the two musicians start from in their improvising. With lots of sensitivity and attention to the nuances of sound and with two musicians who have been collaborating for at least a decade, telepathic understanding is the modus operandi, and the saxophonist and drummer seem to be creating with one mind.
Carrier is a bit of a maverick in the Montreal scene, not taking part in some of the city's more visible events or venues very often, but that has certainly not prevented him from establishing a reputation here and abroad, and attracting top-flight collaborators like Dewey Redman, Bobo Stenson, and Uri Caine. In this duo setting, Carrier's aesthetic is laid bare and his rich alto sax tone is the heart of the project, with drummer Lambert responding and eliciting in a skillful, sensitive manner.
These twenty pieces sound, all told, like a series of sketches, each with compelling lines and interesting textured effects. Non-representational though the music may be, it evokes moods, as in the calypso-like lightness of "Between Colours," the floating shakuhachi effect of Carrier's flute among the branches of Lambert's percussive sounds in "Background," the jagged accumulations of sax and drums in "Clouds," or the keening sax glissandi and drum bubbling in "Tabula Rasa."
The impression one gets is of eavesdropping on two like-minded musicians who are exploring the world of their sonic imagination and tapping into its redemptive powers.
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