This latest Julia Hülsmann release on ECM conceals plenty of treats below its surface. The Quartet is a Quintet for much of the recording, with pianist Hülsmann and the now established line-up of Uli Kempendorff on tenor, Marc Muellbauer on bass and Heinrich Köbberling on drums augmented by the presence of Hildegunn Øiseth on trumpet and goat horn for much of the set. For three enchanted minutes in the middle of the set, four becomes two as Hülsmann and Øiseth give voice and width to the leader’s wistful, harmonically angular meditation The Earth Below.
Half of the ten compositions are by Hülsmann. They Stumble They Walk unfolds a sinuous, oblique melodic line over a quietly pulsing rhythmic figure, Anti Fragile’s stabbing riff and mazy theme has the character of a crazed New Orleans 2nd line, Trick is propelled by a racing left-hand ostinato with little motifs sprinkled over it by Kemendorff and Hülsmann. The Earth Belowand Under The Surface explore a more reflective side of the pianist leader. The emotional force of Hülsmann’s improvising emerges from the development of ideas and interaction with the band and Kempendorff never fails to lift and excite with his playing.
If the quartet, playing on Hülsmann’s compositions, were all there was to this album, it would be a gem. The set is given an extra dimension by the writing of the other regular band members, and projected somewhere very special by the addition of Øiseth. We first hear her trumpet on Köbberling’s May Song. Exploratory shimmers from the rhythm section and blended, keening cries from sax and trumpet, give way to a simple, cycling collective exhalation of chords, Øiseth and Kempendorff together conjuring a transcendent moment. Øiseth does it again on Bubbles, an anguished, extended probing cry this time on goat horn, over a skittering rhythm section accompaniment, before a gorgeous, breezing melody blows the mist away with the band gracefully flying together.
Under the Surface is another evolution of Hülsmann’s increasingly expansive catalogue with ECM and stands as both a compelling session in its own right, and a promise of more rewarding adventures to come with this expanded palette.
Mike Collins is a pianist and writer based in Bristol, who runs the jazzyblogman site
