Collapse - Bal Folk (2014)

Collapse returns to the scene with “Bal Folk”, a second album that is as promising as their first. This time, the Klezmer and Balkan influences are tempered by contemporary jazz on the borders of free jazz and unbridled post-bop.

Alain Deval and his new dream team (Yannick Peeters on double bass and Steven Delannoye on sax) offer an album that is calm and steady, revealing a style that moves away from the musical paths they already explored. With “Bal Folk”, Collapse puts the focus on an aesthetic rather than a technical exploration. The quartet opts for a more personal approach by switching between written and improvised music. Using a configuration à la Ornette Coleman (without a harmonic instrument) opens the door to free improvisation in which the percussion plays a harmonic role and each instrument experiments to create a new sound.
Collapse brings together different musical influences.They share a taste for the current New York scene (Tony Malaby, Mary Halvorson and Kris Davis) as well as the musical heritage of Deval (free jazz from the 60s, rock and electronic music). The album also draws on his visual art with abstract compositions on metallic and geometric surfaces. The album features an almost graphic representation of sound, compositions and arrangements. This is why “Bal Folk” feels at time like a painting in movement, sketched out in blueprints and circular harmonies.

All compositions by Alain deval except track 2 (Lente) by Yannick Peeters ans track 9 (Up the hill) by Steven Delannoye.