Rory Stuart - So Rise Up (2007)

Tracklist

01. Experiment #2
02. Exhilarate
03. Synechdoche in Schenectady
04. Falling angel
05. Unexpected path
06. Lembrancas
07. Pensive
08. The same old same old
09. So rise up

So Rise Up showcases New York guitarist, Rory Stuart, leading his quartet through original compositions that are simultaneously engrossing and technically sophisticated. Stuart is no novice, with a number of recordings as a leader—his first was Nightwork (Cadence, 1982)—and plenty of previous exposure, with artists from the renowned saxophonist Charlie Rouse and B3 organ guru Dr. Lonnie Smith to up and coming saxophonist John Ellis and drummer Dan Weiss. This release features Stuart's working quartet of the past few years, a very talented group featuring Mark Shim on tenor saxophone, Ari Hoenig on drums, and Matt Penman on bass. It gives a view of what the guitarist has to offer both performance-wise and compositionally, with a varied mix of forward-looking and absorbing compositions. You can tell that the band have been playing together for awhile; starting with the dangerous "Experiment #2," a knotty piece that progresses through unusual time signatures, handled deftly by Hoenig and Penman's rhythmic acrobats and Shim and Stuart's tricky unison lines and extended, explorative solos. The quartet shakes, rattles, and bops on "The Same Old Same Old," then closes with the Afro-centric title track, on which Stuart shows more of his encyclopedic guitar playing, as the band joins in and spices up the street party carnival feeling. Combining the old and the new, and mixing it up just right, the music in So Rise Up does exactly as its title suggests.

Rory Stuart - guitar
Mark Shim - tenor saxophone
Matt Penman - acoustic bass
Ari Hoenig - drums

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