Naked Truth

“Shizaru”

(Rare Noise Records RNR019)

This intriguing release brings together something of an international instrumental super-group under the guidance of project leader Lorenzo Feliciati. Ironically the Italian bassist, who also contributes some guitar and keyboards, is the only player in this group whose work I was previously unfamiliar with. Trumpeter Coung Vu first came to my notice as a member of the Pat Metheny Group back in 2002 and later, in 2010, I saw him leading his own trio at Cheltenham Jazz Festival. Genre crossing American drummer Pat Mastelotto is a member of King Crimson plus several other bands and appears here on both acoustic and electric drums and percussion. English born keyboard player Roy Powell now lives in Scandinavia where he has earned himself an impressive reputation working with Arild Andersen, Jarle Vespestad, Anthony Braxton and many others.

Given the diverse lineage of its participants it’s perhaps not that surprising that Naked Truth straddle the boundaries between jazz and rock. It’s arguable that their music could be described by that now much derided word “fusion” but Naked Truth are not about seventies style instrumental grandstanding. The eight pieces on this record are collectively composed/improvised and are more about mood building than mere instrumental prowess despite the obvious abilities of the musicians. Feliciati describes it as taking a “horizontal” approach to the music and the methodology is not dissimilar to that adopted by Mastelotto’s other band, King Crimson. It’s certainly not a straight jazz record, rock rhythms and electronica abound in abundance and there are few solos but the spirit of collective endeavour and adventure comes from jazz. The cover with it’s chimpanzee imagery plus the group’s choice name imply a veiled homage to the final Talking Heads album “Naked”, a record that also had its roots in the improvisational process. 

Vu is perhaps this album’s most distinctive voice, the clarion call of his electronically treated trumpet is rooted in the sound of electric era Miles Davis but Vu’s breathy, vocalised tone also borrows from Europeans such as Nils Petter Molvaer and Arve Henriksen. As he proved at Cheltenham he frequently transcends these influences to come up with a sound that is very much his own. His trio took pop and rock songs (“the new standards” as Vu described them) as the basis for their improvisations, often radically overhauling their source material to produce something powerful and distinctive. Given Vu’s predilection for this material plus his love of volume it’s no surprise that he fits in perfectly with Naked Truth.

Opener “Faster Than A Revolving Door” is Naked Truth in microcosm, brooding ominous electronic textures alternating with chunky riffs underpinned by Mastoletto’s powerful drumming and topped by Vu’s often stentorian trumpeting. Vu can move from a whisper to a scream, often in a very short space of time and the use of dynamics is a very important aspect of Naked Truth’s work. The opener quickly segues into “66” which begins with delicately liquid electric bass before taking on a briefly anthemic air before shading off into something more unsettling. Dark synth textures and spacey old style Fender Rhodes plus Vu’s trumpet squiggles are underscored by both Mastelotto’s drums and guest Mauro Colavecchi’s tablas. It’s a piece that’s always subtly shifting and developing.

The title track mixes the group’s trademark atmospherics with a mighty riff that wouldn’t disgrace King Crimson. Yet this gradually mutates, via more atmospherics, into a Roy Powell Rhodes solo that’s almost conventionally jazzy despite Vu’s subversive trumpet scratchings beneath.

In some respects “Ossimoro” is almost defiantly retro with its 80’s analogue synth sounds but is still infused with a contemporary sensibility. Vu’s long lined trumpet soars above the synth washes and skittering electronic percussion.

“Shining Skin Syndrome” is closer to contemporary ambient or electronica with guest Fabio Trentini adding liquid fretless bass plus kalimba to the equation.

The pulsating “Touching Corners” mixes grooves and textures on one of the album’s more upfront items before mutating into a passage of freer playing featuring Powell on acoustic piano. Powell then switches to trilling Fender Rhodes on “The Naked” doodling above a back drop of edgy synth and percussion before Vu’s long lined, melodic, almost flugel like trumpet briefly emerges.

The concluding “Ahkton” is perhaps the most impressionistic track on the record, the one that comes closest to summing up the press release description of the group’s music as the soundtrack to “a post apocalyptic world where isolated parties from remote parts of the globe communicate with each other in empathy and harmony as they share common tales of struggle , survival and hope amid a bleak wasteland”. There’s a an air of calmness and meditation and a distinct cinematic quality about this final item

My first impressions of this album were that it was disappointingly bland, the result I think of the abundance of synthesiser textures and, given Mastelotto’s presence, the relative dearth of killer Crimson style riffs. But closer analysis reveals a keen musical intelligence at work, this music rarely stays still for long, things are always subtly shifting and evolving and the textures reveal a greater sense of depth and nuance than that suggested by that first casual listen.

“Shizaru” is not quite a classic but it does show considerable potential. Given the far flung international nature of the group it’s unlikely that there will be any forthcoming live appearances which is a pity. It would be good to see Naked Truth’s creative process in the flesh. Let’s hope they get to make another album at least as the next stage of their development should be interesting.

The album is available from http://www.rarenoiserecords.com

COMMENTS

  Dear Sir,

Thank you for the kind words!

There has already been one live appearance, at the Genoa Jazz Festival (http://www.gezmataz.org), featuring Nils Petter Molvaer on trumpet as special guest.

We are pushing to ensure that Naked Truth will indeed have forthcoming live appearances, probably starting the end of 2011.

A new album is already in the works.

Again, many thanks!

Giacomo Bruzzo
RareNoiseRecords

For a glimpse into Naked Truth live, checkout

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=242969142410427&oid=120366424641891&comments;
Kind regards

Giacomo Bruzzo

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