Twelve conversations. Nine releases. Three years. This ambitious project by Swiss percussionist Florian Arbenz goes out with a bang, several thousand thwacks and more moments of pure joy than you could shake two drumsticks at. The final instalment is a red-hot hoot – and a fitting conclusion to this glorious and gregarious series.
Each album pulls a different group of collaborators into the studio. Jim Hart was the only musician who had worked with Arbenz before. He adds vibraphone, marimbaphone, glockenspiel and a bit of percussion to ON!. Szymon Mika features on guitar and Percy Purglove plays trumpet and flugelhorn, with Ivo Neame on Fender Rhodes and synths. Yumi Ito’s vocals round off the recipe.
Where to start? Stomp. A snare-heavy drum pattern opens alongside bluesy, pedal-powered guitar. Trumpet and vocal syllables eventually conjure a melody in unison. Each solo then kicks the machine into a different gear. It’s funky and rocky and infused with street-music swagger. So many moods, ideas and incarnations… It’s a typical contribution to the overall project.
Some tracks offer a softer and more stable atmosphere. Serenity is constructed around breathy vocals, with lyrics borrowed from the hymn Dear Lord And Father Of Mankind. Spaced-out sections leave the listener swimming in zero gravity. Flugelhorn stirs the slow-cooking stew.
Dreaming Music warmly huffs clouds across a purple evening sky. Vocals and vibraphone appear through the wispy, fluffy guitar chords. Arbenz hangs in the background, adding sensitive stickwork.
ON! is an on-the-button ending to this rich and rambunctious series. Arbenz has pulled together fresh personalities to burst out of each album with creative candour and inventiveness. Twelve conversations. Nine releases. Three years. And it has been one big, red-hot hoot.
Discography
Prologue & Speech; Transition; Charles’ River; Yemayà Is Visiting Club 64; Serenity; Stomp; Dreaming Music; Freedom Jazz Dance; Flirtation; Winter Still; Celebration (69.14)
Percy Pursglove (t, flh); Ivo Neame (fender rhodes, syn); Jim Hart (vib, marimbaphone, glock, pc); Szymon Mika (g); Arbenz (d, pc); Yumi Ito (v). Basel, Switzerland, 2024.
Hammer Recordings
