Mike Baggetta - Spectre (2016)

"Guitarist Mike Baggetta has been recording for the past ten years, amassing a discography of distinction. His first release (in 2005) was with TIN/BAG, a duo with trumpeter Kris Tiner, and the pair have released four albums since then. He formed a quartet with saxophonist Jason Rigby, bassist Eivind Opsvik and drummer George Schuller, releasing four albums since 2009. Put in a solo recording and you have a substantial discography of a guitarist with a personal style.

Baggetta is not an in-your-face player, preferring to dole out thoughtful but dynamic phrases with an emphasis on melody and texture. While he uses effects to enhance his sound they are never the dominant force. He frequently distorts his lines through unique phrasing and subtle bending and scraping of strings. And he always seems to be seeking new avenues to explore.

Toward that end, he has recorded Spectre with a new trio of bassist Jerome Harris and drummer Billy Mintz. They’re well-chosen partners and the group really works as a unit. Baggetta is the main voice but Harris and Mintz are always in there helping to shape the material, occasionally merging into one. The general tone is one of pensive calm, yet there’s a questing search inherent in this music that takes it beyond mere subtlety.

“Passage”, the longest track here at 10+ minutes, feels like a distant cousin to “In A Silent Way” with an electronic underlay functioning like the electric pianos on that legendary Miles Davis track. “Leavin’ On Your Mind” (Patsy Cline’s last recording before her 1963 death in a plane crash) gets a gorgeous, free-flowing reading, which unfolds in kaleidoscopic fashion. And just so the listener doesn’t get too complacent, Mintz’ “Nasty” is delivered with snarling fuzz-drenched guitar. This trio is a new vein for Baggetta and Spectre shows it’s one that clearly deserves to be mined further."

-Robert Iannapollo, The New York City Jazz Record (May 2015)

Mike Baggetta (g)
Jerome Harris (b)
Billy Mintz (d, perc)