‘Keep Your Lane’ is an intriguing collaboration between David Jackson and René van Commenée. The two artists have known each other for many years, often collaborating on gigs. That friendship and their live performances led to the release of a live CD – ‘Batteries Included’ in 2003. Jackson also worked with René’s project ‘Mr Averell’. This new recording is the duo’s first studio album that began during the covid lockdown. In the course of reviewing some previously laid down musical pieces David Jackson began re-working arrangements and orchestration – developing new ideas.
When he shared some tracks with René the project brought together two formidable virtuosos. Commenée began adding new production ideas and new parts from his astonishing collection of instruments. That collaboration blends their individual talents into a soundscape of overlaying styles and tempos capturing jazz vibes rock and folk.
Together the duo has created a suite of complex arrangements and multi-tracking with Jackson’s trademark sax and flute interspersed with van Commenée’s percussion. It is a wonderfully diverse collection of tunes that definitely fall into the eclectic and esoteric end of progressive rock and jazz fusion. Take opener Eternal Caravans with it’s pulsating percussion and edgy spiralling brass that gives a North African feel to the music, it is at once gripping but also asks questions of the listener as it builds into a crescendo. Garden Shed continues to pique your interest with its clever, upbeat, jerky delivery, like a brass band jamming with a local jazz collective, it sounds like it shouldn’t work but it really does. I am a big fan of Bird’s Lament with it’s marching band ethos reworked into something dynamic, fluid and thoroughly entertaining and the moody, atmospheric majesty of single release Gateway.
Waving At Strangers continues this diverse musical journey with a sophisticated and refined air, Jackson’s charismatic and compelling sax a laser sharp focus. The intelligent and influential songwriting continues with the intense and cinematic Gridlockdown, a track that could be the soundtrack to a grittier version of Hawaii-5-O and the wonderful medieval pageantry of Hills of The North, another highly satisfying piece of music full of pomp and circumstance. To me, Get A Grip! is a marvellous homage to the crime noir movies of the 50’s, or at least it should be. A true modern classic of dark, edgy jazz fusion with a pronounced air of superiority and a very clever piece of music indeed! Koozokudooro is as quirky a track as its title would suggest, just under two minutes of intrigue and chicanery that puts a smile on my face.
A lively and esoteric jolt of wild escapism mixing time signatures, keys, distorted sounds and voice, Pinball Potter dances suggestively across your synapses and JackLanzCom Haiku sees Jackson’s skittish flute play counterpoint to the moody sax and van Commenée’s strident percussion to deliver a mildly violent musical slap in the face. The new instrumental recreation and orchestration of Pioneers over c, the Van der Graaf Generator (VdGG) classic track from the 1970’s album ‘H to He Who Am The Only One‘. Now titled Pioneers over c, 2023’ is a homage to that elusive track that has only ever been played live once. It features the virtuoso Colin Edwin on bass (Porcupine Tree). Coming in at over ten minutes long, it is a wonderfully evocative piece of music that invokes the heyday of experimental progressive rock in the 1970’s, just lose yourself in the moment and enjoy the awe-inspiring musical tapestry that is laid out in front of you. The album closes with Felona, an impish, wistful piece of music drawn from the ideas that Jackson, with Peter Hammill prepared for VdGG’s Italian friends Le Orme for their 1973 English version of Felona e Sorona, Jackson’s sessions were timed-out, but they were not forgotten and have been reworked especially for this album.
If you’re a fan of intricate music full of expression and inventiveness that showcases the best of jazz fusion and epic progressive rock then go no further, your search is over. A more eclectic album you will be lucky to find this year and I really enjoyed it.
Released 2nd February, 2024.
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