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 - Cinematographic soundscapes.Trying to pigeonhole Bill Frisell is a bit similar to abstract algebra or dwarf-tossing: it's not quite as easy as you might think. Even though the guy is obviously rooted in jazz, there's so much more his music encompasses. If you had to pick one musician from the past 20 years who has really made a difference to the way we perceive sound, the guitarist Bill Frisell would surely come close to the top of the list. His unmistakeable electric guitar technique, in which ambient colour-wash effects are used to create dreamy soundscapes, often set to the contrastingly edgy, off-kilter, rhythms associated with the New York jazz avant-garde, would alone be sufficient to ensure a place in the history books. Bill Frisell became one of the most influential guitarists ever for a style that initially sounded like a cross between a twangy '50s rocker, Jimi Hendrix, Ry Cooder and a tape-recording playing backwards. Those might be distinctive qualities, but beneath all that, Frisell can be a resourceful, more or less straightahead jazz guitarist, and a full-on blues player, or a fastidious chamber-music explorer. They're standard components of any Frisell project, history and mystery. Here they're presented as a subject rather than as a given. It's a two-CD job, featuring an octet incorporating strings, horns and reeds alongside the familiar rhythm section of Kenny Wollesen and Tony Scherr. Plus, much of the material arose from collaborations with Seattle artist Jim Woodring. This is the Bill Frisell who makes great soundtrack music; the one who rejoices in sieving the Hot Club de Paris out of Thelonious Monk. Essential for established Frisell's fan. Not a bad place to develop the taste. "Bill Frisell with strings" might sound like a fantasy combination, but here the guitarist is performing with an octet containing violin, cello and viola. And in a spectral, oddball way, the results are often beautiful. As is frequently the case with Frisell, the music here is a mélange of numerous idioms, from hillbilly to modern classical, with overall a wistful, elegiac mood (which is also typical of him). It all seems to come to life on Thelonious Monk's "Jackie-ing", on which this strange but likeable band swing along like be-boppers from Mars "Though guitarist Bill Frisell can seem indecisive in person, he has the surest touch as a musician. That is true for his playing, where he can invest a single note with meaning, and it's true in the way he organises his music and musicians. That slow response denotes a genuine thoughtfulness. And Frisell has rethought his ensemble lineup - a kind of roots-jazz-classical chamber hybrid, though with none of the hang-ups that might imply. The octet, recorded mainly live here, are particularly good at ultra-slow tempos on numbers such as Sam Cooke's smouldering "A Change Is Gonna Come", and the drawling groove of "Struggle", which foregrounds the string trio of Hank Roberts (cello), Jenny Scheinman (violin) and Eyvind Kang (viola). The 30-track, double CD is studded with gems such as "Baba Drame" (by Boubacar Traoré), "Waltz for Baltimore" and "Monroe", appropriately reminiscent of Ornette Coleman's "Lonely Woman".. ".Guardian Artist Bill Frisell : guitar (with Eybind Kang - viola; Ron Miles - cornet; Hank Roberts - cello; Jenny Scheinman - violin; Tony Scherr - bass; Greg Tardy - clarinet / tenor sax; Kenny Wollesen - drums)
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