actuellecd

Review

Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery, January 30, 2015

This is only the third disc from Evidence who formed in 1985, one per decade. This disc was recorded the same week that Evidence played the entire Thelonious Monk catalogue at a three-day festival in Montreal in the Spring of 2014, no easy feat. This trio has a joyous, jubilant quality that I dig. They sound as if they are having fun, swaggering slyly all the way. It is rare to hear Monk’s music played by an electric bassist but Mr. Cartier’s playing is central to the way this trio sounds. There are a number of highlights here like hearing “Jackie-ing” played on bari sax with such exuberance or the occasional solos from the bass or drums which have that effervescent quality and are an extension of the melody/theme. If you have ever seen a film of Thelonious Monk playing in concert, you know that liked to dance around the bandstand at times, his movements reflecting the structure and energy of the song being played. Hearing this music played by Evidence made me want to dance around as well. It just feels right or righteous.

It just feels right or righteous.