Atavistic Records
2001
Acoustic Machine
About This Album
The last two Vandermark 5 outings, Simpatico and Burn the Incline, were without a doubt sounds from a band coming into their own as a collective. Compositionally they seemed at the wall -- at the margin, or limit -- of where they could go as a band at that point. In other words, those two records were as good as they could possibly have been. With Acoustic Machine, the story is different altogether. Vandermark has become a composer, not only of compelling new jazz, but also for the Vandermark 5 as a unit. His writing and arranging for Jeb Bishop, Tim Mulvenna, Kent Kessler, and Dave Rempis is player-specific, tailoring certain sections, modes, and intervals to the strengths of particular players, thereby maximizing their contributions to the unit. Because of this development in Vandermark's already considerable skill as a composer, the Vandermark 5 are a much stronger band. Consequently, Acoustic Machine is a significant step forward for an already fine band. Each of the compositions here is dedicated to a particularly influential artist in Vandermark's own developmental iconography; the "HBF Series" -- the first short pieces ever released by the group, which are interspersed throughout the disc -- pays homage to visionary minimalist composer Morton Feldman.
Track List (try tracks 1,5,6,11 and 12)

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