I first became aware of Liberty Ellman as the guitarist in Henry Threadgill’s Zooid but he’s been in a variety of bands, all led by some of the best New York Jazz has got to offer: Joe Lovano, Myra Melford, Adam Rudolph and more.
Ellman’s own outings as a leader don’t necessarily get the attention of his various bosses, but they probably should. He’s a guitarist who plays with a high degree of both intellect and humanism to forge a very idiosyncratic style that’s also very embracing. His compositions reflect that as well. The just-released Last Desert represents a fairly rare event, as this is just his third album in the last fourteen years, and fifth overall — hey, he’s a busy guy. But the thought put into this and his prior records make them worth the wait.
It’s hard to argue against the company Liberty Ellman keeps; for this release, he’s got Steve Lehman on alto saxophone, Jonathan Finlayson on trumpet and Damion Reid on drums. Jose Davila, Ellman’s bandmate in Zooid, is bringing his tuba here as well, but with the presence of Stephan Crump (Vijay Iyer, Joel Harrison, Mary Halvorson) to hold down the bass, Davila’s role is a little different this time around, and often changes from song-to-song.
Last Desert is some cerebral jazz, yet avoiding the clutter of some music that often falls into that category. Ellman’s compositions are what you might call storytelling without words; often containing mini-movements or chapters where the plot pushes forward to keep the listener engaged. Ellman likes his songs to arc like a story, too, starting low-key, picking up the pace in the middle and finding a resolution at the end. And there’s always plenty of leeway left for individual improvisation, taking advantage of all this skillfulness at hand.
“The Sip” is Liberty Ellman at his most intimate. The soft, pensive tone of his guitar is soon matched by the sentiment coming from Lehman and Finlayson. Davila’s tuba bonds not to the other two horns but rather, Crump’s bass, creating almost a second front line for low timbres. Finlayson, Lehman and Ellman all take brief, understated solos that fit with the downbeat vibe of the song.
“Last Desert 1” is a long-form composition that takes the listener on a journey across a sometimes barren, musical landscape, where the details are noticed in sharp relief. For instance, the help Ellman gets from his Crump/Reid unit takes his already good solo to the next level. Finlayson is penetrating on his. “Last Desert 2” also begins tentatively before leading into a commanding performance by the astringent alto sax of Lehman and a character-filled one from Davila’s tuba that warranted the rest of the band sitting out because he is holding all the attention, anyway.
“Rubber Flowers” with its tangled lead lines comes closest to Threadgill, but Liberty Ellman maintains more space between the players, and Lehman and Finlayson thrive in the capaciousness. “Portals” sets separate threads for guitar, sax and trumpet as the rhythm section settles into a hard swinging groove and Lehman and Finlayson later exchange ideas.
The intricate syncopation of “Doppler” sets this track apart from the others, Lehman and Finlayson pairing up for a halting pattern as Davila handles the main bass parts on tuba and Reid offers an odd-metered pulse. Creative interplay that Ellman baked in also exists in “Liquid,” then breaks open into a new, brighter motif that serves as a springboard for Davila’s ruminations.
Last Desert is now on sale, from PI Recordings. Pick up a copy from Bandcamp.
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