In his sleeve notes to this, the second album by Swiss super-trio Helveticus, Manfred Papst wryly observes that the three musicians “could be grandfather, father and son”. In terms of their ages they are indeed separated by several generations, but when Samuel Blaser (trombone, b.1981), Heiri Känzig (bass, b.1957) and Daniel Humair (drums, b.1938) combine as a creative force there can be no doubts that they speak as one.
Flexibly post-bop in orientation, the trio’s musical interests span traditional Swiss folk music, classic jazz, original composition and free improvisation. Their 2020 debut 1291 (Outnote Records) was one of the picks of the year, and in terms of its repertoire Our Way follows a similar path. Yet with many more hours of collective playing behind them, their musical conversations now seem broader and deeper. Along with fresh re-arrangements of classics by Ellington (“Creole Love Call”) and Monk (“Jackie-ing” and “Bemsha Swing”) there’s a riotous deconstruction of “Tiger Rag”, several short but purposeful collective improvisations, further pieces from the Swiss folk cannon and perhaps best of all new versions of two of Humair’s best known pieces, “IRA” and “Genevamalgame”.
Humair, now approaching his 86th birthday, is a musical painter and pulse-maker extraordinaire. It’s quite a revelation to hear him channeling Baby Dodds on “Jackie-ing”, and the eight roller-coaster minutes of “Genevamalgame” are a direct hit to the solar plexus. Känzig operates as both harmonic anchor and free agent, and his funky ostinato on “Heiri’s Idea” is the ideal platform for Blaser’s brilliantly fluid inside-outside blowing. It’s not all about ebullient high energy blowing though – the trio’s chilled arrangement of “Bemsha Swing”, the doleful “Mazurka” and deeply reflective “IRA” all reveal a quieter and more sensitive side.
Hearing Blaser in such an open setting is always a pleasure, and so often this music transports me back to the great mid-‘70s trios of Albert Mangelsdorff (growling multi-phonics, slick “doodle” tongued legatos and all). In many respects Blaser is the German’s spiritual heir, and the influence can also be heard in the two compositions that he brings to the set. “Root Beer Rag” is the kind of playful blues Mangelsdorff once made his own (think of “I Mo’ Take You To My Hospital And Cut Your Liver Out” or “Ant Steps On Elephant’s Toe”), while the more explosive “Hook” fizzes with free-spirited joie de vivre.
Surely one of the most satisfying blasts of old-school European free jazz you’ll hear this year, I can only imagine what a formidable force Helveticus must be when playing live.
