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| Rix Glassmeyer's "24,200 Miles" NCM East Records announced the release of "24,200 Miles"from the smashing duo, Rix Glassmeyer. While solidly rock, the horns, changes, and space give away its jazz roots. Tastefully minimal without monotony, 24, 200 miles is a collection of powerfully subtle songs about insects, Incas, angels, farmers, human-powered planes, Satan, snowmobiles, and, of course, women. Each track presents a fresh mood, maturely keeping tabs on the duo's vast musical vocabulary. Although the 13 tracks have a common thread in vocal sound, vivid lyric imagery, and rock backbeats, the approach of each song varies widely, contrasting the familiar power trio sound with ukulele, Moog bass, and horns. These guys owe as much to Al Green as to Van Hallen. The ear-snagging melodies and solid songwriting is built on invented instruments and adventurous recording techniques, somewhere in the territory of Tom Waits or Mitchell Froom. The memorable choruses grab you at first listen, but ten more passes in headphones only raise your interest. The obsessive team of Jano Rix and Matt Glassmeyer present the material in a way only possible through excessive hours in a windowless room. Matt Glassmeyer brings a slew of sounds (guitars, electric bass, ukulele, mandolin, melodica, his own acoustic guitar-turned-drumset invention, samples, and his buzzed saxophone) while Jano Rix lays down a broad range of original drum and keyboard timbres. Jano is an overworked drummer with a jazz piano degree. When not playing with Rix Glassmeyer, he is in high demand as the drummer with groups like The Gabe Dixon Band (Warner Brothers) opening up shows for major pop acts like The Dave Matthews Band, Maroon 5 or Nora Jones. Matt, son of a Nashville music veteran, has a bizarre range of experience. He has been an active creator in the New York contemporary jazz and otherwise scene since 1999, playing saxophone, contra-alto clarinet, electric bass, shuitar, and buzzaphone in groups like Justin Mullens' Delphan Jazz Orchestra, Ddygg and The Morpholinos. write your comments about the article :: © 2006 Jazz News :: home page |