DEK Trio – Burning Below Zero

Trost Records | TR139 | January 2017

Drums – Ddkern
Piano – Elisabeth Harnik
Reeds – Ken Vandermark

Tracklist:
1 RAJ one 29:00
2 RAJ two 25:00
3 RAJ three 4:19

Recorded October 2, 2014 in concert at RAJ in Klagenfurt, Austria

Review on The Free Jazz Collective (Eyal Hareuveni)

Review in New York City Jazz Record (Tom Greenland)

The close chemistry of the DEK Trio, named for drummer Didi Kern, pianist Elisabeth Harnik and Vandermark, is well represented on Burning Below Zero, a live recording at Raj in Klagenfurt, Austria. Although the mic’ing doesn’t pick up all of the piano’s delicate nuances, much detail remains in the two epic tracks and brief closer. “Raj One”, almost a half-hour long, is a through-improvised musical movie of diverse acts and scenes. Vandermark’s big-toned tenor and even biggertoned bass clarinet, which he switches to mid-track, form the tonal center while Harnik’s extended techniques, including unusual implements to scratch, scrape, rub, swat, rake or pluck the exposed strings, fill out the set piece. “Raj Two” shows a wider dynamic range and features Vandermark on soprano, then bass clarinet and finally tenor; after the group ad-hocs a major/minor ballad in E-flat, his unadorned solo ushers in a gentle ruminative ending centered around C-Major. The rowdy finale, “Raj Three”, is dense and percussive, quickly mounting to and maintaining an intense climax, a fulfilling conclusion to the irenic ambiance established during the previous track.

Review in The Wire (Stewart Smith)