Those keyboard-generated timbres define the Underground Duo’s Synesthesia, which features just the Underground’s core members Mazurek and Taylor. While the CD features some unique soundscapes, and its appeal increases immensely with repeated listens, it’s one of the lesser titles in the group’s ever-expanding catalog. The Duo’s previous CD, 12 Degrees of Freedom, mostly focused on the live, free interplay of Mazurek’s cornet and Taylor’s busy percussion. Some of that occurs here, as on the first part of the drums and cornet duet “Threads on the Face,” but Synesthesia’s vibe is more of a studio-composed experiment that relies on overdubs and the layering of Taylor’s vibraphones and Mazurek’s electronically manipulated cornet and keyboard squiggles to make its bed of sound, which often recalls Miles Davis during the abstract-ambient parts of Get Up With It.
Chicago Underground Duo: Synesthesia
JazzTimes may earn a small commission if you buy something using one of the retail links in our articles. JazzTimes does not accept money for any editorial recommendations. Read more about our policy here. Thanks for supporting JazzTimes.
