Michael Formanek

“The Rub And Spare Change”

(ECM Records 2167 273 9514)

The San Francisco born bassist and composer Michael Formanek has lived and worked in New York since 1978 and is a leading figure on that city’s influential “Downtown Scene.” Formanek has worked with most of the leading figures from that cadre of musicians including saxophonist Tim Berne (notably as member of Berne’s group Bloodcount) , trumpeter Dave Douglas,drummer Jim Black and many others. He has appeared on many albums as a sideman but has also recorded an impressive body of work as a leader with his output spread across a number of record labels. British listeners may recall his work with saxophonist Julian Arguelles on the latter’s saxophone trio album “Partita” (Basho Records).

“The Rub And Spare Change” represents Formanek’s recording début for the prestigious German label ECM. It’s his first album as a leader for a dozen years and is well worth the wait. The record brings together four of New York’s most vital musicians with Formanek joined by Berne on alto saxophone, Craig Taborn at the piano and Gerald Cleaver at the drums. Something of a “supergroup” the quartet was assembled by Formanek for a performance at “The Stone” venue in New York City in 2008. Convinced that the group’s work should be documented Formanek took the quartet into the Charlestown Road Studio in Hampton New Jersey in June 2009, the fruits of their labours subsequently being mixed at New York’s Avatar Studios by ECM supremo Manfred Eicher and his assistants.

The programme consists of six tracks, all of them Formanek originals, with some compositions being segued together. All four players have worked together previously in different combinations   and although this particular line up is brand new the level of familiarity between the players is immediately apparent. This is a well balanced group with a healthy degree of mutual respect and a strong spirit of group interaction. The all star ensemble serves Formanek’s compositions well and the music is less confrontational than one might imagine, particularly given Berne’s involvement.

The album strikes a good balance between composition and improvisation. Formanek’s themes are often relatively simple, snatches of melody and rhythm that allow plenty of scope for group improvisation. The composer puts it like this; “Oftentimes I’ll set up a slow ground pulse and subdivide it a lot of different ways rhythmically, perhaps emphasising the bottom part of the groove a little more as the piece develops. I was trying to set up situations that would bring out the qualities I especially enjoy when this group of musicians plays together. Sometimes , also I want to get the structures out of the way when necessary, so as not to stifle the process”. I don’t normally include quotes of this length but Formanek’s summing up of his own music is the perfect encapsulation of what the listener actually hears.

The opening “Twenty Three Neo” is a case in point. Actually a two part composition the opening is based around a twenty three beat ostinato pattern played by Taborn’s rippling piano with shadowing by Cleaver at the drums. Arco bass and Berne’s long alto lines snake seductively over this backdrop.
Formanek describes it as “simple and harmonically ambiguous”. The piece metamorphoses into the livelier “Neo” which is built around a similar but slightly more urgent ostinato. Despite the relative simplicity of the construction and the sparseness of the textures this is still thoroughly absorbing music with it’s own style of austere beauty.

“The Rub And Spare Change” is another two parter. Part one, “The Rub” recalls Formanek’s teenage years in San Francisco listening to and playing in the style of Oakland funk masters Tower Of Power. Not that “The Rub” sounds anything like that although Formanek himself feels the Oakland residue is there in the piece’s “peppery groove”. The title comes from the use of harmonic “rubs” and at times the piece reminded me of the music of Thelonious Monk or Charles Mingus-Formanek was once a member of the Mingus Big Band. The second half of the piece, “Spare Change” is much less structured, almost free, with only the occasional melodic signpost to light the way. It is however eminently listenable- for all it’s improvisational content the music remains disciplined and inherently tuneful.

“Inside The Box” is built on rhythmic progressions and features some of Berne’s most unfettered improvising of the set, sounding almost boppish at times. There’s also a feverishly inventive solo from Taborn, a player with a burgeoning reputation. Hitherto used mainly to underpin the ensemble here he comes over like a Monk for the twenty first century. 

The trio item “Jack’s Last Call” is a simple, sombre tribute to a dead friend with Taborn’s initial piano ruminations underpinned by Cleaver’s subliminal hand drumming. Loosely structured around a simple but heartfelt theme, the piece later mutates into something more akin to a celebration of a life as Taborn displays the full extent of his brilliance on a series of tumbling runs and other pianistic pyrotechnics as Cleaver and Formanek respond to his every move. 

The seventeen minute “Tonal Suite” is a segue of three distinct sections and encapsulates many of the ideas Formanek brings to this date. The first part is notable for the interplay between Berne and Taborn, relentlessly intertwining above Formanek and Cleaver’s floating pulses and grooves. Eventually Taborn cuts loose to solo brilliantly in his trademark febrile fashion. The central section combines song like structures with more abstract free playing, the interplay between Berne and Taborn again totally engrossing. This in turn grows develops into a more urgent closing section encompassing a kind of fractured funk in 5/4 and 7/4 time signatures fronted in the main by Berne’s alto but also featuring the wonderfully percussive piano of Taborn.

“Too Big To Fail” is a pointed reference to the global financial crisis and includes some angry sounding alto from Berne and relentlessly percussive piano from Taborn punctuated by occasional lyrical passages. Most of it is pretty full on with Berne producing his most abandoned playing of the set alongside Taborn’s leaping, vaulting piano, his tumbling dissonance also updating McCoy Tyner.

“The Rub And Spare Change” is a fascinating record. Although Formanek maintains a relatively low profile instrumentally his musical personality very much shapes the recording. His conceptual ideas allow Berne and Taborn to shine with even Cleaver largely adopting a supporting role. For me the balance between composition and improvisation is just about spot on. Formanek brings just enough structure to the record to keep it accessible but allows Berne and Taborn enough freedom to keep things consistently interesting. Some hardcore improv fans may find it a little tame compared to some of these musicians’ work elsewhere and may perhaps claim that ECM’s rigorous and disciplined approach has stifled them. I’d beg to differ, this is an album that reveals fresh secrets with each new listening and will hopefully reach out to a relatively large constituency. For newcomers to the contemporary New York scene this is a good place to start and may perhaps act as a jumping off point for further exploration of the work of the individual musicians involved. I’d be particularly keen to hear something from Taborn as a leader.

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