The Last Quiet Place

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Known for work that resides at the meeting point of jazz, free improv, and modernist composition, German saxophonist and composer Ingrid Laubrock has put out a number of fine albums in the past two decades. On her excellent 2023 release, The Last Quiet Place, she is joined by violinist Mazz Swift, cellist Tomeka Reid, guitarist Brandon Seabrook, bassist Michael Formanek, and drummer Tom Rainey.  

Laubrock's work has a wide scope: it has ties to Gyorgy Ligeti and Anthony Braxton, but it also can loosely recall 1970s prog, Captain Beefheart's Trout Mask Replica, and the post-rock that came out of Chicago in the 1990s. This engagingly restless music is often dense and off-kilter, but also has room for more lyrical passages.  

Place opens with "Anticipation," part of a suite that draws from the same tone row for all its sections, and which also includes the title track and "Delusions." This atmospheric, at times woozy piece displays Laubrock's close concern with timbre; here, as elsewhere on the album, ever-changing textures and instrumental groupings help create odd mood shifts.   

On "Grammy Season," Laubrock lets loose sax lines over jittery bass, unsettled drums, and skronky electric guitar. At one point the music briefly takes on a smooth quality before returning to its generally agitated state. Later, strings join in with a variety of contrasting bow attacks. Towards the end of the composition, the strings brood as they are backed by restrained touches of guitar and drums.  

"Chant II" is from a series of pieces inspired by speech patterns. (You can also find it on Utter, a 2018 duo album featuring Laubrock and Rainey.) Here it opens with string scrapes, plucks, and slides. Sax enters and makes its way through this hyperactive field. Tumbling drums appear, and the group sound grows larger. The strings drop out, and electric guitar slashes away. In the last section the sextet plays a timbre-shifting four-note figure over and over again, making for a delightfully delirious ending.  © Fred Cisterna/Qobuz