We're mid-way through 2010 and Han Bennink has already made himself heard in a big way. One of the top records to come my way so far -- Tobias Delius 4tet's 'LuftLucht' -- owes much of its success to the drummer's rare ability to spin a straight rhythm in so many odd directions. 'Let's Go' comes from a different place altogether. This LP comes from a winter 2008 session in the Netherlands, taken when Dutch guitarist Terrie Ex and Canadian saxophonist Brodie West took time off from the Ex and Getatchew Mekuria's European tour (a 2006 recording of the band fronted by the legendary Ethiopian saxophonist can be heard on the recently reissued 'Moa Anbessa'). Terp Records, the stellar Dutch label run by members of the Ex, provides a fine platform for Bennink, Brodie, and Ex to show off their wares as first-class improvisers.
This time out, Bennink and Co. operate in a curiously accessible improv mode. Its certainly not a spacious affair with the participant's instruments slowly dragged across an enormous room, nor is it a claustrophobic blood-bath of volume. The sound is firmly rooted in between the two extremes and for the forty minute duration, it doesn't budge. This firm stance is most likely the result of the nature of the performance -- the band is trapped in-studio. I'm positive that, given the stage and its trappings, the trio would sound off in a far more outwardly exploratory manner. That's no detractor to 'Lets Go'; the studio environment forces the collective energy into a single spot to stew. The oft-noted grievance that Han Bennink is misrepresented on his many live recordings gets reduced to naught and 'Lets Go' forces the vigor of Bennink & Co. straight into the aural field.
The trio works almost flawlessly, in a way that duos of years past (Bennink/Ex, Bennink/Brodie) were incapable. Over two sides of an LP, the trio rumbles on with just as much excitement and grit as on Bennink and Ex's projects, but with the raw finesse hinted at by Bennink and Brodie's collaboration. Terrie Ex's offerings as an improviser just keep getting better, and he's well-served by the meaty tone and calculated delivery of Brodie West's alto. The pair do the majority of the leg-work to keep the sound in a forward direction, and pass off the lead seamlessly. Bennink just stomps along as he sees fit, giving a swift kick here and there to break a thought and keep his comrades on their toes. West and Ex respond triumphantly and, seemingly, from nowhere they pull out some Cooper-Moore-eque rubber-band bass from a detuned guitar or an uncharacteristic squeal-shot from the alto. This collaboration is an immensely rewarding, fresh look at improvisation from a mighty strong trio that I seriously hope to hear more from. Hot stuff!
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