Sunship @ Rose Live 8/26/09

Perfect! I knew it would be amazing. It was even better than I could possibly imagine! This is another one of those projects that could represent a dream band I couldn't possibly imagine. Each of these 4 stand on their own and is worthwhile to attend anything they are a part of.

I couldn't get out until 8, the scheduled start time. I made it to one of my new favorite venues at like 8:15-8:20. They were already on and sounded awesome. I paid the low, almost stealing, $10 cover. At first, I was right outside the room, back by the bar. I could see a little, enough, and I was very happy with the music. I also had a little dancing room. I could tell I didn't want to be there for the whole show, though. There was likely to be some bar conversation and the sound of making drinks.

I realized there was still some space inside the room and I was able to get the same awesome spot I had for Charlie. Yeah! I wasn't alone over there this time. So, I just had to dance in place. I was pretty happy the whole time.

This is an awesome new project. It was the perfect place for me to see it. I missed that gig at The Stone. Of course I still love The Stone! Rose Live is the same travel time and has AC.

It was all stellar. There was one piece where Marc and Mary were playing the same music. That was my favorite. They sounded so good together, yet they also sound so different from each other. Actually, each of them are pretty unique in their playing.

The drum solos and bass solos were off the hook! Actually, I can say that about the rhythm section at any point in time.

They played til 9:30 and then did a short encore. They said they wanted to get a gig in before going to Europe.

This is yet another great part about living here .... Great people want to practice on us.

August 26, 2009
Rose Live Music (Brooklyn), 8PM
w/ Sun Ship (Mary Halvorson, Jason Ajemian, Chad Taylor)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Ship
Sun Ship is a jazz album recorded on August 26, 1965, by tenor saxophonist John Coltrane. The album extended the free jazz ideas of Transition. The relaxed, serene feel of earlier ballads like "Welcome" was transformed into a new style of ballad on "Dearly Beloved" and "Attaining". This style involved very slow tempos, drum rolls and fills, and a louder, more intense feel than traditional jazz ballads. Like "Psalm" (from A Love Supreme), there is no real tune, just a scale or series of tones used to build an improvised theme. Coltrane's solos on the other tracks are also more extreme than on his earlier albums, and are reminiscent of the style of Albert Ayler and Pharaoh Sanders in their extensive use of altissimo and multiphonics. The title "Sun Ship" may have been inspired by Sun Ra's conception of free jazz as having an affinity with science fiction conceptions of human existence.

Sun Ship was one of the only albums John Coltrane's quartet recorded without sound engineer Rudy Van Gelder. It was also one of the last albums (with First Meditations, recorded a week later) which John Coltrane recorded before he began experimenting with larger groups. Tenor saxophonist Pharaoh Sanders was playing regularly with the band by September, 1965, and both McCoy Tyner and Elvin Jones left the band in January, 1966.