Bristol’s week in jazz, April 8-14 2019

If you discount the legendary Terry Riley’s sold out concert on Saturday, is the biggest noise this week going to be a solo piano in St George’s famed acoustic?

Maybe, though a couple of vibrant vocalists, a host of quirky innovators and some straight down the line jazz treats all jostle for attention, too.

The solo pianist is Hauschka (St George’s, Thursday 11), whose credentials as soundtrack composer sees him appearing as part of the Filmic2019 programme. His patiently disciplined music mixes ‘prepared piano’ and an evolutionary minimalist approach that has seen him compared to Nils Frahm but also owes much to the pioneering work of the aforementioned Mr Riley himself. As they say … ‘people who liked this’ …

Of the two vocalists mentioned above the most obviously jazzy is Georgia Anne Muldrow (Fiddler’s, Tuesday 9) but the soaring freedom of Ivory Coast’s Dobet Gnahore will also resonate with jazz-loving ears. Both use contemporary electronics to weave their sound, with hip-hop and jazz grooves holding things together. Georgia Anne rides easily over funk and soul beats, deploying clever compositions and arrangements effortlessly, while Dobet’s African traditions slide into contemporary soul.

For quirky innovation there’s Canterbury’s Jack Hues & The Quartet (Crofter’s Rights, Wednesday 10), Bristol’s own Defective Comet (Canteen, Wednesday 10), Chiminyo (Saturday 13) and  Phantom Ensemble (Gallimaufry, Sunday 14) plus Walthamstow’s  The Oscillation (Crofter’s Rights, Sunday 14). Jack Hues came out of the revived psychedelic Canterbury Sound along with Syd Arthur (who share the bill at Crofter’s). Since their cosmic beginnings the band have developed an experimental jazz style that still holds the meandering trippiness that launched them.

The Defective Comet emerged from the much missed Gas Giants as the quick-thinking improvisatory duo of drummer Tony Orrell and multi-instrumentalist Ross Hughes, deploying electronic trickery and acoustic sounds in spontaneous jazz-dub numbers. Even more stripped down, Mr Chiminyo is a solo performer whose drum kit has been cleverly wired up to trigger a galaxy of sounds (as well as straight drumbeats, of course). There’s a similar mix behind Phantom Ensemble but the music is a splendid contemporary jazz-hop blend of dance beats, sample crashing and improvised sax and vibraphone. The Oscillation’s layered psychedelia has a minimal post-rock ethos harking back to 60s radicals Can, Neu! or the Velvet Underground. It’s held to a knowingly restrained drone-flavoured thing that is oddly catchy, too, and the same could be said for Housewives (Crofter’s Rights, Saturday 13).

When nu-soul Duval Project trumpeter Gary Alesbrook announced a new jazz album last year it may have surprised some fans but Gary’s commitment to the music shone out of reworking of classic songs, with vocalist Elliot Cole’s contribution a notable ingredient. There’s a new Gary Alesbrook & Elliot Cole Quintet album in the making, naturally, and much will be showcased at Bristol Fringe (Wednesday 10). Led by the versatile guitarist (and suave crooner) the Denny Ilett Quartet (Future Inn, Thursday 11) is another classy jazz project from this restlessly busy man who also appears in guitar-saxophone duo Figes & Ilett (El Rincon, Friday 12). It’s an unfortunate cross-river crash with saxophonist Julien Alenda’s interesting new quartet’s debut appearance at The Bebop Club.

A quick multipack of flavours: you may remember world-folksters  Elephant Talk? Well they’re not to be confused with the London-based grooving jazz septet of the same name, appearing with searing post-jazzers Milon at Mr Wolf’s (Thursday 11). Another brassy London outfit Space Ghetto pops up at Leftbank (Friday 12) with a distinctly funky approach to jazz. There’s a 7-piece coming to Exchange (Sunday 14) albeit a collective of improvisatory players who may even be all appearing solo for an afternoon of surprises. The name? Cunningly it’s Foster, Grigg, Hawkins, Hitchens, Kelly, Metz, RRS.

And finally the Cube launches QWAK Club #1 (Saturday 13), bringing ‘the far reaches of sound and vision together with a fun and inclusive atmosphere’. This first night includes an alchemical opera (featuring ‘analogue visual synths’), an improvised soundtrack performance to expanded 16mm projections and Polish audiovisual duo WIDT.