The West Coast of the USA has a lot to answer for, “entertainment’s culture for instance. Another west coast staple is a syrupy brand of jazz fusion — fortunately Brain Ellis’ The Silver Creature is light on the syrup and heavy on the innovation. This West Coast sound is firmly rooted in the precedents set by previous generations of musicians. Unfortunately this has resulted in music rooted in empty cliché, complete with signifiers of cool from a bygone era. What’s the point in employing the latest technology in the studio to simply ape what has gone before? I have often wondered where the risk-taking attitude and wilful disregard for the jazzy tropes of previous eras, exhibited by the late 60s/early 70s work of Herbie Hancock and Miles Davis, disappeared to? Brian Ellis’ new release on Scots label Benbecula has unearthed this increasingly rare commodity.
Summoning all of my creative powers to earmark this release with a genre would be pointless; it’s a bit like describing the Sun Ra Arkestra’ releases of the 1960s as “jazz’. Imagine the Blues Brothers Band playing the Village Vanguard, or the theme to British high-school show Grange Hill played by a phalanx of sheltered workshop employees? A quick scan of San Diego native Brian’ influences would suffice to broadly locate The Silver Creature within the musical universe; Alice Coltrane, Amon Düül 2, Eric Dolphy, Silver Apples and Boards of Canada, to name a few. I’ve always had an irrational dislike of Weather Report, since being forced to learn some of Jaco’ bass lines, so I’m relieved to see that Brian makes no mention of yesterday’ forecast!
Crisp, heavily syncopated drums open the album on “The Morning After’ before descending into a striated, high-register psychedelic guitar, complete with increasingly slurred phrasing on the melange of instruments brought into the mix. This track sets the mood perfectly for what is to follow; staying broadly within this template, Brian never bores or overplays his hand, mixing up the Art Ensemble of Chicago and Fela Kuti with contemporary production techniques pays handsome dividends. On “Para Ti’, he explores contemplative cul de sacs that would be a dead end in the hands of a less accomplished musician.
“Night Trails’ and “Flute Salad’, despite their egregious titles, are the standout tracks. “Night Trails’ booms in with depth-charge toms and a melancholy minor key organ lament before a swelling change introduces Brazilian style electronics complete with a strangled trumpet motif riding scattershot over it all. “Flute Salad’ follows this mould, but is delivered in a manner so memorable that the melody was etched on my frontal lobes after two listens. The changes in mood and tempo, and the introduction of the seldom-heard Bolivian 12-string mandolin were like a worm burrowing into my ear.On The Silver Creature, Brian Ellis delivers a memorable album that touches on many influences, but is not in thrall to any of them. This album rewards repeated listens, and points towards a sound world that acknowledges its West Coast precedents, but never rests on its laurels. I look forward to hearing where Brian travels to on his next musical journey.
Oliver Laing
