Full Review

Pat Battstone, The Last Taxi: New Destinations Review

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Pat Battstone is a prolific creator, not just a pianist but a rocket scientist, an improvisational soul and a groundbreaking thinker when it comes to his collaborations and how he sees and hears music. He has recorded and produced 7 CDs with Italian vocalists since 2016. His collaborations in Italy have given him the opportunity to perform with Gianna Montecalvo, Francesco Massaro, Francesco Cusa, Adolfo La Volpe, Giacomo Mongelli, Giorgio Vendola, Camille Pace, Nico Catacchio, Chris Rathbun, Marilena Paradisi, Teresa Raneri, Cettina Donato, Giorgia Santoro, Chiara Liuzzi, Marialuisa Capurso, among others. He has also appeared in several significant Italian festivals including the Jonio Jazz Festival, Gela Jazz Festival, International Jazz Day Siracusa, and the Jazzit Festival. His latest endeavor with Italian artist, Daniela Chionna, is a journey of creating both music and artwork in an improvisational and natural interplay between abstract artist and improvisational artist, titled The Last Taxi: New Destinations.

Overview

Item Reviewed

The Last Taxi: New Destinations

Author

Steph Cosme

August 27, 2019

In Short

Twilight Departure
Attraverso La Cittá
Inside The Dark Castle
All The Birds Have Flown
Where Sea-Creatures Slowly Dance
Escape Syndrome
Sunrise Over A Painted Desert
The Markets Of Marrakech
Rewind
Morning In A Japanese Garden
Absyinte
Looking Glass Woman
L'Amore Rêvé

Details

Release Date: April 15, 2019

Label

Leo Records

Length

1 hour 5 minutes

Battstone creates a soundscape of instrumental and vocal excursions that delve deeply into the exploratory realm of beauty and tension. The result is a satiated listen.

Review Rating

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Album Rating

9.2

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Bottom Line

Battstone is joined by vocalist Chiara Liuzzi on select tracks, the vocalist uses her voice as an instrument of exploration, interacting with the group sound for a heightened experience. Guitarist, Giorgia Santoro invokes a prolific line up of instruments including flute, bass flute, bansuri, xiao, piccolo, including voice on “The Markets of Marrakech.” The idea of vocals in Battstone’s latest excursion is more so as an instrument of improvisation versus the traditional lyric approach. The core trio sound is propelled by Giacomo Mongelli on drums, Chris Rathbun on bass, who has appeared on several of Battstone’s releases and of course Pat Battstone himself on piano. Of particular note is guitarist Adolfo La Volpe, who invokes full use of his guitar tone and the use of live electronics. The overall result of The Last Taxi: New Destinations is an adventurous listen, that will keep you on your heels. This is not a jazz relaxation listen, it will take several invocations of spins to get to the core of the sound and to digest the sheer mastery of each track. That’s the short of it!

9.2

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