Bobby Previte Nine Tributes
(Independent)
Bobby Previte Dark Current
(Independent)
You might not want to read the names of the tunes—like “Hunter and “Ulmer”—on Hudson-based composer/drummer Bobby Previte’s recent disc Nine Tributes, simply out of the fear of being unintentionally misled. Tributes, performed with a quality combo spearheaded by woodwindist Michael Kammers and ace guitarist Mike Gamble (whose nod to New York noise maestro Elliott Sharp is particularly satisfying), pays heed to string slingers Previte has worked with previously. No thankless task for Gamble! It is certainly a beautiful record, ostensibly jazz, but with many mantra-like overtones of classic Krautrock, so much so that one pines for a (Michael) “Karoli” or “Rother” even though it doesn’t appear. Despite the ambitious titles, Tributes doesn’t veer quite as outside as (Sonny) “Sharrock” as deeply, introspectively inside as Bill “Frisell,” or as self-consciously arty as Wilco collaborator and Jazzmaster visionary Nels “Cline.” Taken on its own terms, though, as, say, a tribute to Previte’s own masterful skills as a tunesmith and leader, right on!
The same goes for the Webb Telescope-inspired electronica of the eight-track Dark Current series. Different than Previte’s other work? Yup! Completely entrancing, like something straight out of Conny Plank’s Cologne studio in 1974? Yup, again! March 10 marks the release of the final tune of the series, “NGST” (Next Generation Space Telescope”), for which the entire record was written. File this in the “Kosmiche” section of your library and it will feel right at home with the motorik rhythms, keyboard washes, and random/not random vocal effects. Even more miraculously, Previte did it completely alone. A soundtrack for now, as we consider stepping off into the Space Race once again.
This article appears in March 2023.
