Glasshopper – I’m Not Telling You Anything

Clonmell Jazz Social

The second release from Glasshopper sits very happily on the eclectic post-jazz roster of Clonmell Jazz Social. Borrowing as much from meandering folk and sturdy rhythmic rock as jazz, this trio is all about interplay and momentum.

The first thing you notice is the sweet tone of the sax but the rhythm section, if you can call it that, of guitar and drums is irrepressible. The cheeky, supple lines picked out by the guitar support the sax well, but it is all subject to moments of doubt. Playful electronics fizz around the main instruments and all these differing facets take it in turns to propel.

I thought “Major Hit” sounded as if they were playing around with “Guantanamera”, and here the mellow guitar chords and diffident percussive textures strip their sound right down to basics with the sax as the warm, inviting arm around the shoulder. Although they are working on the edges of jazz, there is far more going on here as they slip on different coats, try them for size and then skip on to the next. Some of the tracks here would have sat well on Thrill Jockey and others tap at ECM‘s door before running away laughing, and although serious subjects are tackled, the exuberance can not be tamed.

With no bass, there is a lightness to the pieces and where the guitar covers the bass’s absence, it automatically lifts even on the melancholic stasis of “Take Out The Sun”, where cymbal texture accompanies enjoyably laboured peaks that crash into silence. There is an air of confusion, scratching around for reason in a desert of varied sounds, soft and questioning. It takes some effort to find their way back via a particularly fetching percussive tumult, but with one another’s support, they make it.

“Grunge” feels like that big, slightly drunk friend who grabs you and drags you onto the dancefloor, throwing you around with delight as you try to avoid collision with other revellers. He might stop for breath here and there, but is always ready for more and by the end so are you, while “Music Stands” has a really folky feel with the sax touching on flute territory. Hints of jazz and Americana are poured into the cauldron in one flowing manoeuvre. Its jaunty shanty rhythm shows yet another side and even in these more measure moments, the joy can’t help but shine through, smeary impressionist textures further beguiling.

Final piece “I Go To Bed At 10pm” sound most unlike something that would be produced by somebody who goes to bed early. They are straining here, building an unexpected air of tension as the space is filled with oscillating electronic tones. The cymbals count time and it feels a little like that cemetery scene in The Good, The Bad And The Ugly where they are all waiting for the first person to crack. In the end, some crazed voices are hurled around and the dam breaks, washing us off our feet until the album draws to an abrupt close.

This album is a joy from start to finish and although it is only a trio, there is enough going on to want to press play again just to hear what you might have missed. Give it a try; you won’t be sorry.

-Mr Olivetti-