Petros Klampanis – Irrationalities – [TrackList follows] – Yellowbird/Enja YEB-7797, 40:03 [10/18/19] ****:
(Petros Klampanis – producer, upright bass, voice, glockenspiel; Kristjan Randalu – piano; Bodek Janke – drums, percussion)
Some individuals may argue with someone else, “Oh, you’re so irrational!” Bassist Petros Klampanis might take that as a compliment. On his fourth album, the 40-minute Irrationalities, the Greek-born, New York City-based Klampanis focuses on the positive side of illogical, contradictory and incongruous aspects. The eight tunes are, as stated in the short CD liner notes, “inspired by the courage one must have in order to constantly reinvent themselves. It is dedicated to people who are not afraid to ask difficult questions and are willing to embrace the irrationality that exists in the answers.” Klampanis uses the material on Irrationalities as a prism to center on what it means to be a global citizen—Klampanis splits his time between Athens and New York—including the differences and similarities of living in two cultures, which can at times feel like both a struggle and harmonic. That worldwide acceptance is echoed by the other trio members: pianist Kristjan Randalu has Estonian heritage and grew up in a small German town; drummer Bodek Janke is of Polish descent and met Randalu in the same town.
Klampanis funnels his many influences into his six originals and two covers. Balkan and Mediterranean inspirations flow through the classic Greek ballad “Thalassa Platia” (English translation: ‘wide sea’) by Manos Hadjidakis, respected as one of the greatest Greek composers of all time (Klampanis calls him “the Jobim of Greece”). During “Thalassa Platia” the trio showcases the kind of empathy which filtered through antecedents such as the Oscar Peterson Trio or the Bill Evans Trio. The international flavor is palpable on three brief interludes or vignettes all titled “Temporary Secret,” which include found sounds of airport announcements, crowds and city clamor. The longest and most interesting interlude (which uses nature’s noises) is a hidden track, so don’t stop the CD after the final cut, “Blame It on My Youth,” concludes. The aforementioned “Blame It on My Youth—a jazz standard written by Oscar Levant and Edward Heyman and covered by Keith Jarrett, Gary Burton, Fred Hersch and many more—is redone in the Bulgarian kopanitsa folk rhythm (basically 11/8 time), which provides the sublime ballad a familiar and yet transcontinental tendency. Klampanis does something similar with his nearly eight-minute composition, “Seeing You Behind My Eyes,” an emotional piece based on the kalamatianó rhythm (essentially 7/8 time), which comes from a type of Greek folk music associated with a dance sharing its name. The first half is impressionist and open-minded, like the soundtrack for a painting by Claude Monet; the second half has a groove-tinted foundation, maybe something you might hear in your head while contemplating a Jackson Pollack creation.
The seven-minute title track was the crux which initiated the rest of the album. It commences with Klampanis’ overdubbed vocalizations in a staccato style, followed by a beautiful Randalu solo, and then the trio fluently shifts time signatures while moving through a vamp. The threesome’s interaction during “Irrationality” is a marvel to hear. The opening number, “Easy Come Easy Go” is rhythmically complex but also has a danceable foundation, which is apt since Klampanis calls it “a dance with life: people are coming into your life and leaving, there are joys and disappointments, and you have to keep going.” Another composition related to changing one’s perspectives is the mid-tempo “No Becomes Yes.” Klampanis explains his piece “expresses the fluidity of things. As life goes by, you come to understand that something you considered solid was not solid at all. Sometimes we have to change our conceptions in order to go forward.” Irrationalities is readymade for jazz trio fans who appreciate likeminded artists such as Jarrett, Hersch, Bill Evans and so on. Irrationalities could easily be the unspoken poetry for making our everyday lives a bit more irrational.
TrackList:
Easy Come Easy Go
Seeing You Behind My Eyes
Temporary Secret
Irrationality
Thalassa Platia
Temporary Secret II
No Becomes Yes
Blame It on My Youth
Temporary Secret III [hidden track]
—Doug Simpson
