CRAIG TABORN QUARTET
Chris Speed tenor saxophone/clarinet, Craig Taborn piano, Chris Lightcap bass, Dave King drums
According to its label ECM, dynamism and spectral ambience with acoustic and electric sounds, groove and lingering melody all come together to animate Daylight Ghosts, the first album by the Craig Taborn Quartet. Pianist Craig Taborn is being hailed as a ‘visionary of the current wave’ (Downbeat) because of his intriguing style of playing, equally influenced by jazz, contemporary classical and electronic music. In his band he performs with like-minded trailblazers from the American avant-garde: saxophone and clarinet player Chris Speed, bassist Chris Lightcap and drummer Dave King (The Bad Plus).
‘However far from familiar paths the American pianist Craig Taborn strays, he sounds surefootedly convinced of his route, and however private his music, it emits a vivid intensity. Daylight Ghosts, a superb quartet set, operates in Taborn’s favourite free-floating manner. Only players with deep jazz insights and wide musical references could have made this fine album’ (The Guardian, ****).