Many young Chicago players turn up on 482 Music’s rewarding compilation of local talent, Document Chicago: New Jazz and Improvisation. Bands like the Vandermark 5 and the Chicago Underground have put creative Chicago music back on the map, but those players rarely hang in the city these days, and a raft of younger players have stepped in to fill the void.
The compilation is surprisingly good. It’s packed with Parker-like (Jeff, that is) gentle melodic guitar, subtle use of electronics and manic free-jazz energy, and that bodes well for the Midwest’s best creative-music city. A few more established players turn up here, including the aforementioned Parker and the Vandermark 5 members drummer Tim Daisy and saxophonist Dave Rempis, who appear as two-thirds of Triage. Come for them, but stay for bands like the Exciting Trio, the Matana Roberts-led Sticks and Stones or the manic deconstructionists the Treehouse Project.
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