Colin Stetson is a virtuoso. It doesn’t take a very close listen to his new record, ‘New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges’, to work that out. The album consists mostly of compositions for solo saxophone recorded live in the studio (save the occasional guest vocal performance) and, as such, its success is founded upon Stetson’s considerable mastery of his instrument.
Principal in Stetson’s arsenal is his circular breathing technique, unleashing streams of notes without pause for minutes at a time. Although ‘Judges’ was recorded without the use of overdubs Stetson brings in multiple musical voices to his pieces and his music rarely sounds like the work of a sole performer. Whether singing through his horn as he plays or underpinning a melodic line with gently undulating bass arpeggios, Stetson’s playing is remarkably layered and nowhere does ‘Judges’ feel restricted by the constraints indicative of a solo performance.
Engineered by Efrim Menuck (Silver Mt. Zion) and subsequently mixed by Icelandic noisesmith Ben Frost, the studio techniques used on this record add further depth to the music. Prior to recording, Stetson would set up multiple microphones with varying degrees of reverb to move between as he played and the resulting variety of textures abundant on ‘Judges’ is simply stunning. Much of the music on this record is as concerned with the mechanical sounds of the saxophone as it is with the notes that are actually being played. Midway through Clothed In The Skin Of The Dead, Stetson’s fluttering high register arpeggios are joined by the sound of the saxophone’s keys tapping, adding a rhythmic tug to the previously meandering melodies and elevating the track to yet a higher level of beauty.
Whilst, on paper, ‘Judges’ is undoubtedly an interesting record, there is always a danger that Stetson’s music could come off as gimmicky. All this studio trickery and virtuoso playing is merely academic if the music fails to connect with its listeners, and there are certainly moments on this record that are easier to admire than enjoy. The almost industrial rhythms of Red Horse (Judges II) serve only to disrupt the melodic arch of the album and there is a sense that Stetson included this track simply to display another facet of his technique.
For the most part, however, ‘Judges’ is a well considered and focused set of compositions. The album’s lead single, The Righteous Wrath Of An Honourable Man, sees Stetson negotiating scales at furious speeds like a man possessed, but looking beyond the technicalities of the track one is left with an overall impression of aching sadness and longing. Indeed, throughout the record Stetson’s virtuosity is rarely allowed to obscure the emotional and melodic heart of his music and as a result ‘Judges’ is so much more than a masturbatory display of skill: ‘Judges’ is a record to fall in love with.