Search - Dave Douglas :: Infinite

Kind of Miles-ish, (re)birth of the (60s) cool

R. Hutchinson | a world ruled by fossil fuels and fossil minds | 03/22/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Dave Douglas and his quintet have produced a fusion record -- a fusion of various sounds of Miles' bands from the '50s to the late '60s! Douglas has chosen 3 recent pop tunes to cover (potential "new standards" by Rufus Wainwright, Mary J. Blige, and Bjork), 2 of them ballads, a tried and true Miles move. Uri Caine plays electric piano throughout, lending the proceedings a late '60s ambience reminiscent of "Miles Smiles" and "In a Silent Way." Clarence Penn excels in the Tony Williams role. The sound is very much of a piece, like "Kind of Blue," and the recordings of Miles' '60s quintet. The tracks for "The Infinite" were laid down live, just like the KOB sessions. Douglas sounds quite Miles-ish here on trumpet, and his compositions remind me of Wayne Shorter and the sleek, progressive '60s Blue Note sound, which I love. From the record company's website I learned that 1) Douglas says "Penelope" is his own favorite on the album, 2) "Yorke" is named for the Radiohead singer, and 3) Douglas was consciously striving to emulate Miles in making a "beautiful and direct" record. The playing is solid but understated, like "Kind of Blue," and also like that '59 classic, "The Infinite" is for the most part a romantic, evening hours set. I have been following Douglas for several years now, and I am not quite as impressed with this one as his earlier more adventurous recordings such as "Constellations," with trumpet/guitar/drums, or the 3 recordings by the string quintet on Soul Note (check out "Five" and "Convergence"). But Dave Douglas is versatile and multi-faceted, and "The Infinite," his 4th record for RCA/Bluebird, has the potential to reach a much bigger audience with some excellent modern jazz. This would be a fine thing, not just for Douglas, but for the state of jazz, as Douglas is an innovator (even if not so much on this album), keeping jazz open to creative influences rather than trying to embalm it, mummified forever in formulaic styles of the past."

Sell out? Uhhhh, no

S. Hawkins | New York, NY | 02/19/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I find it utterly disgusting that a previous reviewer accused Dave Douglas of selling out by releasing this album. Such an accusation implies that one has no idea what Dave Douglas is all about. We're talking about a man who, in the past several years, has released albums spanning the entire map in terms of stylistic content, and who has worked throughout his career to avoid being pigeon-holed.This album is a more stream-lined, disciplined outing on Douglas' part - a huge change from "Witness" which was released the previous year. The sound here is a little more mellow and subdued - Douglas opts for smoother lines and more linear phrases. However, this music by no means induces sleep. Douglas' lines are constantly interesting, and the entire group works brilliantly together to make this music work - particularly Uri Caine who does amazing stuff on the Rhodes here.So, no, this is not a sell-out album. This is one more album that refuses to be piegon-holed, and that provides countless wonderful and rewarding listens."

Reservations?

R. Hutchinson | 05/29/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I agree with Dan d'Auteuil below in that there is something rather clinical about this. I think though that this record was one that Dave Douglas had to make (the Miles thing) and that now it is out of his system, the quintet (if they record again!), can go on to other things.... I bet it is a cracking live set though!
As an introduction to DD and his sound this is as good a place to start as any, although I personally prefer his compositional style in the context of the string group.
Having said all that, Penelope is amazing!!"