Listening to "XYZ," the opener on 23-year old pianist Hiromi’s debut, Another
Mind, is like taking a sucker punch. You never see it coming and it knocks the breath out of you.
"XYZ" is a cross between "Giant Steps" and
"In America" taken at light speed. This diminutive young woman has anything but a
diminutive sound or vision. About the time you catch your breath, Hiromi introduces the tour de
force "Double Personality" with Dave Fiuczynski on guitar and Jim Odgren on
alto saxophone.
Defying all categorization, Hiromi Uehara (who goes by her first name) and this merry bunch
speed across a tightly composed an choreographed tonal landscape that sounds very much like
well behaved contemporary jazz gone wild. Fiuczynski employs a variety of effects in his playing
that range from very melodic to atonal. He plays slide guitar, standard guitar and sound effects.
Odgren’s full-bodied alto has a R&B twang. All of this is pinned down by Dave DeCenso’s deft
rock drumming.
"Summer Rain" is a bit more introspective, but still every bit the burner as the first two
cuts, with Odgren playing like a cross between Dave Sanborn and Maceo Parker. "Joy"
has the flavor of church and is the most down-home of the compositions. "010101" hums
with technology when Hiromi explores some electronics. All these compositions are clever in
conception and staggering in performance. The solo closer, "The Tom and Jerry Show,"
betrays a bit of whimsy among billions and billions of notes performed in every style of jazz piano
ever conceived (and yet to be conceived). All the pieces clock in at over five minutes, allowing the
composer and performer to adequately express the complex ideas contained in this very smart
music.
In the same way that Sonny Rollins' "Blue Seven" (from Saxophone Colossus
) can be considered a touchstone of jazz composition in the 1950s, so can "Double
Personality" in the 21st century. Hiromi is just starting her conquest of jazz; it should be
exciting to hear how she will shape the music’s future.
Visit Telarc Jazz on the web.
~ C. Michael Bailey
