Nik Bärtsch’s Ronin
Nik Bärtsch composition/piano/Fender Rhodes, Stefan Haslebacher bass clarinets, Thomy Jordi bass, Kaspar Rast drums
Six years since their previous album Live, the Swiss formation Ronin is back with Awase, again released on ECM Records. Ronin needed time to develop according to band leader Nik Bärtsch, known for his unique composition style. With minute sounds he builds a fine-meshed structure of rhythms and grooves. The tight performances by Ronin recall minimal techno and electronic music. Awase is a term from the Eastern martial art Aikido, meaning ‘moving together’.
‘Firmly anchored to the groove, Swiss-born Bärtsch leads his group Ronin through knotted Moduls. Layering his piano into and above ever-evolving patterns from a locked-in rhythm section, the group flirts with rock, funk and some kind of cosmic, Steve Reich-informed varietal of jazz. When bassist Björn Meyer and drummer Kaspar Rast start percolating, Bärtsch touches on a new form of musical propulsion, one that isn’t necessarily swinging but always moving, evolving and expanding, ever forward’ (Los Angeles Times).