vijay iyer

[JSngry]

Iyer's one of the few "newer" players that (often enough) tell me stories that keep me listening.

"Great record"? I don't know. Give all a few years and living with and then decide. All I know is that the guy and his cohorts speak to me of (not to) "today" in some pretty basic ways (down to the sound of their records, very hard, in-your-face, like hip-hop & not RVG) that not all that many others do.

What relevance "today" has to "forever"...we'll know when we get there. In the meantime, as long as the stories are there, I'll keep listening.

And Rudresh - YEAH!

[Tom Storer]

I just picked up "Historicity" the other day to see what all the talk is about. Due to time constraints, I haven't finished listening to it yet.

Many of the high-technicity piano trios these days remind me of watching Olympic competitions: the blend of keen concentration, highly trained athleticism, pride in performance, and ambition. You think "Damn, look at that! Aren't they good! Imagine being able to do something like that!" But that stuff, although it can be thrilling in a way, rarely makes me smile.

My first impression is that "Historicity" has a good deal of that kind of mindset in it, with perhaps a little more feeling. Iyer is certainly a hell of a pianist, and he has an admirable strength and gravity in his touch. But as Larry's comments at least implied, there seems to be more in the way of tricky-meter arrangements than graceful line. It may be reactionary to say "where's the melody?" but let's face it, sometimes you end up thirsty for it.

[org320]

Before I come here , I have never heard of Vijay Iyer . I will download his Pianolude to enjoy , because I want to experience another stytle . BTW, I like Yani ...

[fent99]

I'm not really familiar with Iyer's stuff as a leader, but I do really enjoy him in tandem with Craig Taborn in Roscoe Mitchell's 'Note Factory'. He's also pretty spectacular IMHO in Wadada Leo Smith's 'Golden Quartet' - check out the awesome DVD of a performance at the Banlieues Bleues festival for some evidence of this...

To cross reference another thread somewhere, there's a nice - really quite short - segment on this week's BBC Radio 3 'Jazz Line-Up' where he's interviewed by Kevin LeGendre - a nice conversation for sure, and well worth the listen!

Been lisening to the NPR recording from Newport 09 of Iyer (all downloadable from the NPR website) and enjoying it. Sure its clever but not so bad it put me off...

[Hoppy T. Frog]

Really don't want to read the disagreements above (I started and gave up). I have at least one cd and have heard him "live" a few times. He seemed ok, but I enjoyed his frequent partner Rudresh more.

Can anyone recommend a "great" recording by him?

I have all his albums, because I find his music intriguing, and I really like Mahanthappa (saw him live with Amir El-Saffar and it was beautiful--very emotionally moving if anyone thinks this scene is "Too smart for you"). One problem with all his previous albums, except maybe Mother Tongue, was that they felt like work to listen to. It might be a result of the CD-era tendency to make an album as long as possible. However, the new one actually is fun to listen to. It has melodies (kinda!), and it's more memorable than the other albums. This sounds like a backhanded compliment, I know. But give it a try.

I will say that I think the much-lauded Mike Ladd collaborations are TERRIBLE. I couldn't sell them back to the CD shop fast enough.

[king ubu]

I heard Vijay Iyer and Rudresh Mahanthappa in duo last night.

They kicked off a short European tour in a nice jazz club outside of Zurich, where I fail to go nearly as often as I should, just because it's a quarter of an hour train ride...

The first set was highly virtuosic, the opening meandering free improv was amazing, how Mahanthappa flexes and bends the tones and how he catches up straightening out his lines just before it gets too weird was truly masterful! Then they mostly seem to go on autopilot, creating quick-fingered and -minded music that was amazing but ultimately failed to convince me.

After the break they returned for a shorter set, and now they were PLAYING! Wow! They did just two long tunes, first a bluesy kind of 5/4 thing that went into a great groove immediately. Both did amazing things on that one, and in spite of all the craftsmanship and artistry involved, the music sounded simple, direct, and was of great beauty! That went on in the second tune, which almost got into a kind of Abdullah Ibrahim vibe, Mahanthappa playing with an almost overripe sound on his alto. Truly great music! The encore though was back to autopilot (and a good example why after a fine concert, encores often are a nuisance...)

[mjazzg]

Thanks for the review Ubu. I'm seeing them in London on wednesday. I hope they do for me what they did for you! I saw Iyer play solo last year and that was a fascinating evening's music so really looking for to the duo

[WorldB3]

My first impression is that "Historicity" has a good deal of that kind of mindset in it, with perhaps a little more feeling. Iyer is certainly a hell of a pianist, and he has an admirable strength and gravity in his touch. But as Larry's comments at least implied, there seems to be more in the way of tricky-meter arrangements than graceful line. It may be reactionary to say "where's the melody?" but let's face it, sometimes you end up thirsty for it.

Listening to Historicity and I am enjoying it, I agree with your assessment but I feel that way about some of the recordings of his most obvious influence on here in Andrew Hill.

First impressions so far are good ones.

Edited April 4, 2010 by WorldB3

[Aggie87]

Giving a spin to Rez Abbasi's "Things to Come", from 2009. Some nice playing by both Rudresh Mahanthappa and Vijay Iyer on this one.