For the recording of their third album 'Het Deert', Bestiaal (Gent, BE), the trio around drummer / composer Sebastiaan Vekeman, headed for West Flanders. This project breathes the fresh sea air of coastal town Ostend (BE), thanks to the recording in residence at De Grote Post, the album artwork a painting by James Ensor), a partnership with kleinVerhaal / DRIFT label and the collaboration with recording director Serge Feys (T.C. Matic, Arno, etc.) and mixer Jeff Claeys (Millionaire, The Van Jets, etc.).
‘With You', a song by T.C. Matic co-written by Serge Feys, was the starting point and the major source of inspiration for the new album. The droning, raw character of the music heard on 'Het Deert' is reminiscent of a fierce, marching brass band in a procession; a similar atmosphere to many of Ensor's paintings. This fanfare is voiced by the occasion ensemble NOODDRUFT 6, led by trumpet player Bart Maris.
As the foundation of the iceberg, Bestiaal is flanked by three extra bassists on the album. Cyrille Obermüller (double bass), Pieter Lenaerts (double bass) and Tobe Wouters (tuba), together with Bas Gommeren (double bass), provide a whirlwind of bass sounds and a feeling of pleasant unease. Above all, Bestiaal is a collective that develops an authentic sound, averse to rules, expectations and hypes. It is a sound that can lead to moments of scorching fury, abstract exploration as well as whispered caresses. Always on the wrong track, and back to the edge of your seat.
Bestiaal's jazz can be quite potent. Originality and willfulness have always been core values for jazz musicians, but here they are natural components of a strikingly stubborn character. Bestiaal's elusiveness is largely due to the compositions of drummer Sebastiaan Vekeman, which are still anchored in the classical jazz language, but also make a run for it. The compositions on 'Absoluut' (2016) and 'Inenen' (2018), for example, were not classical structures with a familiar head and a tail as an exclamation point, but a free pass to tell stories that only follow their own, erratic logic. Just as is the case with new album 'Het Deert'.
File under: Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog, Liberty Ellman, Henry Threadgill, De Beren Gieren
