Laura Cole has been part of the Ron Caines / Martin Archer Axis since its inception and clearly revels in the world that Ron weaves with his compositions. After recording two of his pieces for piano, initially for inclusion on the previous Axis album, the decision was made to retain them for an entire album of Ron’s compositions set for grand piano. With this idea in mind, Laura then decided that as a companion disc, some of the compositions could be set for string quartet and thus was born ‘Sky chord/Haptic space’.
The Sky Chord disc contains eleven tracks, each one an enigmatic journey tying Laura’s ability as an interpreter to her elegance as a pianist; it opens with the slow plangent sweep through “Sky Chord” itself and it approaches carelessly, completely disarming with its early morning quality. There is a lushness and richness to the tone that is entirely welcoming, Laura relishing the notes, measuring their separation and listening to the decay before another rolls along. There is a stately space and even where subtle discord wends its way in, the pieces follow their own enigmatic logic.
There is a darkened romance to some of the tracks, their richness rather moving and oddly lulling, but really the playing is absolutely sublime; her understanding of how much is needed to push the piece along and then how sparse the notes should be in another setting. It makes for quite the voyage, the chosen songs diverse enough to retain constant interest as they travel from rolling structure to fractured minimalism, from waltz time to joyful abandon. At some points we are barely above silence, the notes suspended and the decay almost visible in the atmosphere of the studio; at others, our resolve is tested as the note selection starts to scamper into more unusual territory and are almost ugly in a couple of places, an ominous reflection in a broken silence or a bludgeon held threateningly before ascending to Teutonic elegance. Later there are touches of classical structure, but these are tempered by fractured squeals and this sense of paradox is very much part of the work as a whole from scattered pins to romantic melancholy in the blink of an eye.The second disc is far more involved, with five pieces set for the ember string quartet and although these pieces appear stripped down on the first disc, apart from the odd recognisable melody or motif, they are completely separate works with extra texture and more tension. The abstract squeals sound almost like feedback, containing a willingness to be less reserved with the original compositions. In places it feels like an awkward conversation, the cello deep and barking with violin and viola frying in the background.
It is extraordinary the sheer physicality of these reconstructions on Haptic Space; you can really sense the players reaching in for something visceral, a way of making them stand out and recognised for something wilder; the stirring churn of cello and bass really moves the body, while the violin and viola dip and swoop, forcing you to step in their shadows. It isn’t all overwhelming drama, though with certain sections in a more minimalist vein, a kind of pointillist procession takes place which adds a sweetness and fullness that sees them circling back, reigniting a lost motif and seeing in which other direction it can be stretched. There is one section which had me envisaging a particularly hazardous jungle, the extra string textures creating unexpected dimensions and then the delicious bass starts to propel with real purpose. These pieces have a vibrancy that is further fleshed out when Laura joins them for the finale, a dramatic rendition of “Calypso Roto” which had a two-minute outing on the first disc. Here, after a meandering intro, the strings start to pick at the piano, sliding and slithering around the central melody; they lose their reserve a little, skittering off on their own trajectories like skaters leaving an impression on virgin ice. This really does feel like a conversation, but people struggle to be heard over a general good-natured hubbub; the whine of violin, the scoffs of other strings and the piano tears through it all with the most to say.It is a dramatic and impressive climax which then leads us to wonder what the first disc would have been like with the string quartet let loose. But that is a question for another day; because for now, this two-disc labour of love is more than enough. It takes some already lovely songs and totally repurposes them, in some cases twice, and the end result is one that is equal to the original pieces giving them new definition. Allow this album to overwhelm you and then go back and revisit the originals to see just how much Laura has accomplished.
-Mr Olivetti-
