MUSIC REVIEW BY Amy Swanson, WERS Radio, Boston
This is the second album from Portland-based jazz musicians Upper Left Trio. The band claim "electricity and audience with an open mind" as basic requirements on their website (simply, www.upperlefttrio.com). The upbeat and eclectic Sell Your Soul Side is produced by Origin Records, and indeed rewards the ready-for-anything listener, without being inaccessible to the jazz neophyte.
The Oregonian touted the trio's first release, Cycling as a top 10 home-grown album for 2003. The good vibes have continued for their follow-up album, with Clay Giberson leading by his sometimes ecstatic, sometimes thoughtful, piano playing. Jeff Leonard on basses (that's plural) and Charlie Doggett on drums, accompany and a rich conversation evolves.
Adam Greenburg of the All Music Guide calls Sell Your Soul Side, "a well-planned trio outing" with "chord progressions reminiscent of jazz-pop fusion." Yet however well-laid out the music on this nine track album, a listen from start to finish reveals it's anything but predictable.
Indeed, listening to the album progress is like taking a pleasure walk without thought for a final destination. The trip just goes and goes, with quick, freeform, jiggy steps that progressively become more reflective as the songwriters see fit. Upper Left Trio gains the listener's trust with a sound that alternates between soothing and inspirational.
Track one, "Heads or Tails," starts off with a space-y sort of a sound that grooves its way into an emphatic conversation between keyboard and drums. "Comrade Camenzind" (Track 5) showcases Giberson's agility on the keyboard with its measured start leading into lush, cascading notes, that move back into introspective melodies. The album finishes with the lovely "Prayer," a fittingly meditative close to this richly textured group of songs.
Sell Your Soul Side is a beautiful body of work. Rich enough to be listened to for its own sake, and mellow enough to provide the perfect backdrop for lively dinner conversation or a good read. Upper Left Trio lets the listener decide.
The Oregonian touted the trio's first release, Cycling as a top 10 home-grown album for 2003. The good vibes have continued for their follow-up album, with Clay Giberson leading by his sometimes ecstatic, sometimes thoughtful, piano playing. Jeff Leonard on basses (that's plural) and Charlie Doggett on drums, accompany and a rich conversation evolves.
Adam Greenburg of the All Music Guide calls Sell Your Soul Side, "a well-planned trio outing" with "chord progressions reminiscent of jazz-pop fusion." Yet however well-laid out the music on this nine track album, a listen from start to finish reveals it's anything but predictable.
Indeed, listening to the album progress is like taking a pleasure walk without thought for a final destination. The trip just goes and goes, with quick, freeform, jiggy steps that progressively become more reflective as the songwriters see fit. Upper Left Trio gains the listener's trust with a sound that alternates between soothing and inspirational.
Track one, "Heads or Tails," starts off with a space-y sort of a sound that grooves its way into an emphatic conversation between keyboard and drums. "Comrade Camenzind" (Track 5) showcases Giberson's agility on the keyboard with its measured start leading into lush, cascading notes, that move back into introspective melodies. The album finishes with the lovely "Prayer," a fittingly meditative close to this richly textured group of songs.
Sell Your Soul Side is a beautiful body of work. Rich enough to be listened to for its own sake, and mellow enough to provide the perfect backdrop for lively dinner conversation or a good read. Upper Left Trio lets the listener decide.
Soundclips
Other Reviews of
"Sell Your Soul Side":
Audiophile Audition by Paul Pelon IV
Chicago Jazz Magazine, March/April 2006 by Paul Abella
All Music Guide by Adam Greenburg
Radioio.com by Dr. Mike
All About Jazz by Dan McClenaghan