Is the next stage of jazz fusion to be with heavy metal rockers? Here are two attempts…
Playing various saxes and melodica, Bryan Beninghove teams up with guitarists Eyal Maoz and Dane Johnson, drummers Shawn Baltzor and Kevin Shea as well as bassist Ezra Gale and trombonist Rick Parker to delve into the songbook of the heavy metal masters, Led Zeppelin. The addition of Parker’s trombone works very well as an adjunct to the leader’s searing sax, with a headbanging “Misty Mountain Hop” featuring the alto. The drums plod and flair to the fuzzy strings on “When The Levee Breaks” and Beninghove’s own title track, with the take of “D’yer Maker” the most swinging of the covers.
Nirvana also gets re-interpreted, as Rick Parker/tb, Jon Lipscome/g, Ezra Gale/b, Madmu Giddappa/dr, and guest bones Curtis Vowlkes, Robert Stringer and Alex Asher delve into the desultory. A bit of a reggae lilt is palpated on “Verge Chorus Verge” and “Where Did You Sleep Last Night?” with dark guitar hues on “Something in the Way” create sepia tones. Fuzzy guitar feedback is prevalent on “Heart Shaped Box” and “Space Needle” with agonizing effects from the brass. Bleak blues.