Tim Brady’s 24 Frames series (this double CD and its companion 24 Frames—Trance, from 2010) is about precision and virtuosity. Billed as a larger project of “24 compositions… atmospheres… scenarios… [and] ways of playing guitar,” the Scatter discs offer six duos and twelve miniatures (solo pieces) composed by Brady. All are finely crafted, note perfect, and are performed with a pristine timbre— perhaps too pristine for my taste. Brady’s duets expand the virtuosity that’s at play, with him often challenging his fellow musicians to duals with his fret board.

Jean-Marc Bouchard (baritone sax), Lori Freedman (bass clarinet) and Karen Young (voice) all take the challenge and keep pace with Brady’s sizzling fingers on their respective instruments. Young’s vocal range is particularly impressive and at points she perfectly matches the texture of the distortion that Brady adds to his sounds. The highlight of the duets is a lovely piece with violist Pemi Paull. The warmth of his playing adds a particularly good counterpoint to Brady and encourages a beautiful interlude between some of the more ostentatious work.

The miniatures disc shows even more of Brady’s talents, with a bit of warm flare overcoming some of the previous showiness. Threefold Scordatura finds him creating nice Frissell-like forays around his guitar, while Delay Tactics sees him creating wild sonic escapades out of the possibilities of four types of delay pedals. Finally, Five Colours ends the collection with a series of descriptive sound colours that end the project on a particularly warm note.

Voici deux CD qui bouclent le cycle 24 Frames du guitariste Tim Brady, amorcé par un coffret CD/DVD paru en 2010. Le premier disque fait entendre des duos entre la guitare électrique et les membres de Bradyworks. Les pièces sont surprenantes, et il est difficile de pointer une préférence entre les duos avec voix (Karen Young), sax baryton (Jean-Marc Bouchard), clarinette basse (Lori Freedman), alto (Pemi Paull), trombone basse (Trevor Dix) ou percussions (Catherine Meunier). Le deuxième CD présente Brady en solo, et offre un excellent aperçu de la vaste palette sonore et stylistique du compositeur, comme de ses capacités d’instrumentiste! 4/5

It took Tim Brady five years to complete 24 Frames, a series of 24 solo and duo pieces for electric guitar and electronics. On record, 24 Frames is split across two separate releases. Released earlier this year, 24 Frames: Trance features the last six “frames” on a CD accompanied by a DVD. 24 Frames: Scatter features pieces 1 through 18 on two CDs. Disc 1 contains six duos with members of Bradyworks and Quasar, plus other musicians. Jazz singer Karen Young is the most surprising duettist here, in Frame 1: Scatter, but the best track is Frame 2: In Almost Unison with baritone sax player Jean-Marc Bouchard. Disc 2 features 12 short pieces for solo electric guitar grouped in three cycles, with and without electronics — a tour de force that brings back the fact that, beyond his symphonies and multimedia projects, Tim Brady remains an exceptional guitarist and a commanding composer for his instrument. Recommended.

Translated from French.