Awakening

Mitchell, Nicole
Delmark Records
Jazz | Oct 2011

Reviews

Fo
Reviewed 2011-10-09
NICOLE MITCHELL: Awakening
Delmark, 2011

MODERN JAZZ – AACM flutist Mitchell steps back from her recent large-scale projects for a quartet date featuring Jeff Parker on guitar. The music is friendly but challenging: after a light bop warm-up, the group quickly heads into adventurous new territory with quirky tunes that leave lots of improvising space. The band didn’t exist until a few days before recording, but they’ve all been associates on the Chicago scene for many years and that mutual familiarity shows. Solid stuff.

Fo’s Picks: 2, 3, 6, 7, maybe 8

1. 6:58 – light, boppish stroll: flute runs high and low, relaxed guitar
2. 9:04 – steady linear groove / weightless emptiness / drifting solos / groove
3. 7:04 – circular modal groove has a hypnotic effect: easy to get lost in here
4. 2:24 – gentle tone poem, delicate and mysterious
5. 11:37 – three parts: chugging circles / free flute & drums / gentle daydream
6. 8:55 – low, stormy sound settles down with slow, bluesy guitar & flute solos
7. 6:21 – sneaky, quiet groove w/a funky touch: great twisty flute & bass solos
8. 6:03 – gently meandering: appealing solos over mysterious backing
9. 5:23 – light and slippery with just a hint of darkness under the surface

[ Fo ] - October 2011

Recent airplay

Curly Top
RebopDec 06, 2011
Center Of The Earth
No Cover, No MinimumDec 02, 2011
More Than I Can Say
RebopNov 29, 2011
Center Of The Earth
No Cover, No MinimumNov 25, 2011
Journey On A Thread
RebopNov 22, 2011
Center Of The Earth
RebopNov 15, 2011

Charting

2011-10-09 — 2011-12-11 Jazz
Week EndingAirplays
Dec 11 1
Dec 4 2
Nov 27 2
Nov 20 1
Nov 13 1
Nov 6 1
Oct 30 1
Oct 23 1

Track listing

1. Curly Top
2. Journey On A Thread
3. Center Of The Earth
4. Snowflakes
5. Momentum
6. More Than I Can Say
7. There
8. F.O.C.
9. Awakening