Forensic Trio

Now that he’s reached senior citizen status, among Sheffield-based saxophonist Martin Archer’s multiple ensembles are some which reflect his beginning as an acoustic improviser. The Forensic Trio may be one of the most relevant because, besides augmenting the Free Music with electronics that has been another of his preoccupations over the years, his associates are just as adaptable. Pat Thomas, who works with the likes of Opry Robinson is also involved in electro-acoustics, but spends Heartless drawing novel tone from the keys and innards of the piano. Johnny Hunter who plays with Cath Roberts among many others, divides his expressions among drums, percussion and glockenspiel.

With these dualities or trialities of timbres available trio members can be as abrasive, jolting and uncompromising as they wish in their interactions, but maintain a layer of dynamic counterpoint so that development keeps pace with discovery. That means that percussive reverb is as likely to come from twanging inner piano strings as from the drummer ruffs or smacks. It means that a reed interlude may involve stacked multiple doits or cries from two or more saxophones at once or bitten off or clarion tones reacting singly to dynamic piano glissandi, drum rolls and cymbal pops.

Uniquely Hunter’s accents come in the form of glockenspiel raps or subtle patterning in pace of backbeats. Archer’s voltage oscillations add stop/start crackles for additional noise textures that surround intense note examination by any one of the three. Plus no matter how often Thomas pivots to piano string sawing or strumming, especially during “Improvisations In Traditional Form” and “Heartless, Heartless…./ Rotten State” irrepressible rhythms are never neglected, Story telling in the midst of dynamic exploration, his piano emphasis is as much about projecting honky-tonk-like melodies as it is about projecting tough expositions from forearm crashes across the keyboard.

Heartless is garnished with enough tingling hisses and echoing oscillation to confirm electronic integration into the narratives. Besides this though combining multi reed expression, multi percussion accents and multi piano elaboration adds up to a sympathetic process that can be appreciated simply.

–Ken Waxman

Track Listing: 1. Rotten Start 2. Improvisations In Traditional Form 3. Heartless, Heartless…./ Rotten State 4. Rotten Star

Personnel: Martin Archer (alto, sopranino and baritone saxophones and electronics); Pat Thomas (piano) and Johnny Hunter (drums, percussion and glockenspiel)