Michael Zerang & The Blue Lights Touring Europe this November
By Kato Bookbird
Michael Zerang & The Blue Lights (European Edition) consists of: John Dikeman – Alto & Tenor Saxophone / Dave Rempis – Alto & Tenor saxophone / Emil Strandberg – Trumpet / Kent Kessler – Contrabass / Michael Zerang – Drums, Composition. Join us if you are around, you will be rewarded with positive frequencies!
➡ Nov 19 | Evinger Schloss | Dortmund, Germany
Event Link & Tickets: http://bit.ly/1M8JGI7
➡ Nov 20 | Akut Festival | Mainz, Germany
Event Link & Tickets: http://bit.ly/1NUapbJ
➡ Nov 21 | Club Manufaktur | Schorndorf, Germany
Event Link & Tickets: http://bit.ly/1RoaMZC
➡ Nov 22 | Krakow Jazz Autumn Festival | Krakow, Poland
Event Link & Tickets: http://bit.ly/1RWhMOs
➡ Nov 24 | Made In Chicago Festival | Poznan, Poland
Event Link & Tickets: http://bit.ly/1hTIsSY
➡ Nov 26 | Martinschlössl | Vienna, Austria
Event Link & Tickets: http://bit.ly/1Lfqsd1
➡ Nov 27 | Stockwerk Jazz | Graz, Austria
Event Link & Tickets: http://bit.ly/1xjfFZC
➡ Nov 28 | Alte Gerberei | Sankt Johann in Tirol, Austria
Event Link & Tickets: http://bit.ly/1MTqexY
➡ Nov 29 | TBA | Wels, Austria
Event Link & Tickets: Coming soon!
Audio from Songs Of The Big Book Of Love:
Audio from Hash Eaters and Peacekeepers:
Zerang put together the group last year, and based on three demo tracks I’ve heard, it’s dynamite. The pieces are built around warm, woody ostinatos from Kessler (a Zerang collaborator from the beginning), with tart, sparse horn parts filling in the foreground—first with soulful calm, then with increasing agitation. The lovely themes would remind me of late-70s and early-80s recordings by the likes of David Murray, Craig Harris, and Julius Hemphill, except they’re imbued with Middle Eastern sonorities. The melodies’ graceful simplicity allows Williams and Rempis to take flight without losing touch with the elegant grooves. I can only imagine how hot the Blue Lights will be by the time they wrap up this weekly Tuesday residency at the end of the month, but they’re already on fire. — Peter Margasak
Their first performance is a great indication, expect deep acid grooves in a potent decoction of World vernaculars. — Uncanned Music Chicaco
Some of the most majestically beautiful work of the evening unfolded in "Come to the Palace of Love," from the new album. Kessler's bowed lines on bass and the horns' wide-open tones gave the piece a regal, fanfare-like quality. Before long, Rempis' murmuring alto, Zerang's gently rolling percussion and Kessler's softly stated bass lines showed the subtle side of the Blue Lights. — Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune
These fierce individualists have wholly embraced Zerang's approach for the Blue Lights, crafting a music that bristles with dissonance in its solos but is very nearly euphonious in ensemble passages. Most of the pieces the band played during the first set were built on an easily perceived backbeats – or at least a fairly steady pulse – giving even casual listeners something to hang on to. Add to this songs that often conveyed catchy riffs and three-part horn writing of considerable tonal beauty, and you had the best of two worlds: fiery solo statements alternating with carefully crafted, melodically attractive passagework for the ensemble. — Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune
The intricate counter-point of massed horns versus bass on Bright Lights And Saucy Tights brings to mind J.S. Bach, while the syncopated cadences and earthy, low-end melody of Chicago Rub Down contain the potential for some serious funk. But this is still music for improvisers, and it won’t be complete until the last time these musicians play it. — Bill Meyer, Chicago Music
For additional reading, please visit the Michael Zerang & The Blue Lights artist page. Stay up-to-date w/ pictures, videos, audio and other impressions from this tour by joining our Facebook Event Page!
