Chris Potter: Circuits
Edition Records

We're now at a point, apparently, where the bad rep early fusion acquired has faded, making an artist like saxophonist Chris Potter feel comfortable embracing it, just as earlier generations did the acoustic music of Miles and Coltrane. Following three ECM albums, Circuits sees Potter bringing a seriously plugged-in sound to this solid effort on Edition Records. Were one disposed to labeling, the album might be called neo-fusion, with Potter attempting something of a Weather Report update and nods to Zawinul and Shorter arising along the way. Joined by keyboardist James Francies, drummer Eric Harland, and (on four of the nine cuts) electric bassist Linley Marthe, the leader's in full multi-instrumentalist mode, his tenor and soprano augmented by clarinets, flutes, sampler, guitars, keyboards, and percussion.

One thing that clearly distances Potter from Shorter is the former's propensity for blowing, his aggressive volubility exhibiting little of his colleague's cerebral reserve. Anything but reticent, Potter's assertive tenor is a direct and dominant force on the recording, and his robust attack is surely one of the album's major takeaways. Adding to its appeal, he typically enhances saxophone with other woodwinds, bass clarinet, for example, often shadowing the tenor and thereby enriching the arrangement.

“Invocation” opens the album with a compelling argument on behalf of his arranging, performance, and writing talents. A luscious, polyphonic overture, the two-minute setting augments bass clarinet with saxes in what's presumably a solo performance realized through overdubbing. That harmoniously rich, singing intro acts as a gateway for muscular, rhythm-powered material that suggests Potter's been keeping his ear close to the ground. Emblematic of that style is “Hold It,” which features him adopting a rather Shorter-esque tone for his tenor alongside a loping, stutter-funk groove and multi-layered synthesizers. Any Shorter associations disappear once the solo arrives, however, which the leader executes with full-throated gusto, Harland matching his intensity with his own dynamic, free-wheeling performance. The cut's representative of Circuits, too, in the complexity of its design and scope of its production, Potter favouring material that's melodically driven and episodic. Still, as intensely designed as the track is, it still leaves space for Potter to blow.

His affinity for strong hooks is evident throughout, the sinuous melodies coursing through “Koutomé” cases in point. Looser in character than the other cuts, the track exudes a swinging African feel with Marthe and Harland supporting the leader's tenor with a restless, ever-fluttering backdrop. On the title cut, the bassist and drummer invest the tricky groove (11/8, I believe) with an earthy funk feel that sets the scene for a particularly high-spirited turn by Potter and, leaving no doubt we're in fusion territory, a Moog solo as warbly and squiggly as one from a vintage ‘70s date. Though tenor's his main axe, Potter graces the rubato meditation “Queens of Brooklyn” with soprano and flute, the cymbals-enriched exploration providing a respite from the rhythm-heavy settings.

February 2019