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Home  Press The DLQ Albany Jazz Festival Concert Review
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Albany Jazz Festival Concert Review |
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BROOKLYN IN THE HOUSE
St. Louis native Dan Loomis has been making
serious noise since he made the New York scene: The bassist has
garnered critical acclaim with projects like Spoke and The Wee Trio,
and the Dan Loomis Quartet’s I Love Paris was one of my Top 5
Discs of 2007. Loomis revived the DLQ for his maiden voyage up the
Hudson, and if first impressions make the most impression, then Loomis
and his partners definitely left a mark. As the Riverfront crowd
settles in for the afternoon, there’s usually a lot ofconversations
during the first couple of acts. By the time Loomis was bowing through
the free-style middle section of “Queep”, there wasn’t a word to be
heard, as the audience’s attitude went from “Who cares?” to “Who ARE
those guys?!?”
Loomis’
compositions have hard-bop foundations, but there’s a symphonic quality
to his playing and arranging that brings deep levels of strength and
surprise. (The fact that he plays snapping, dynamic bass lines that
grab you by the ears doesn’t hurt, either.) Trumpeter Eli Asher’s
unmated horn combined razor-sharp accuracy with a power reminiscent of
Freddie Hubbard, while Belgian reedman Robin Verheyen used tenor and
soprano saxes to snake-charm us all. The front line’s harmonies were
simply unearthly, and Loomis’ longtime collaborator Jared Schonig
contributed dialogue of his own with some of the most animated drumming
Riverfront has seen to date. The Dan Loomis Quartet is a prime example
of the jazz revival that’s happening on the Brooklyn side of the Hudson
River. With any luck, they’ll be bringing more revolution this way very
soon.
- J Hunter, All About Jazz
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