Released in conjunction with The Tucker Brothers’ Live at Chatterbox – which explosively captures the restless, relentless energy of Joel and Nick Tucker’s quartet at their regular Indianapolis gig – Communal, the debut EP from Joel’Tucker’s Commodore Trio, is a very different, seriously offbeat kind of jazz animal that explores a unique side of his artistry.
Centered on Joel’s ambient electric guitar, the Commodore Trio (featuring Brendan Keller-Tuburg bass and piano and Justin Clark on drums) begins with the hypnotic, atmospheric and new agey “We Are Surprised,” which features a reading of U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limon’s poem of the same name.
The bustling, chaotic, polyrhythmic jam “Communal” is pure art-rock spotlighting Tucker’s swirling, then fiery electric guitar and Keller-Tuburg’s improvisational piano solo. The suite continues with a two part “Soundscape” (1 and 2) that reveal themselves as contemplative and melodic rock-jazz musings before the trio wraps with the at first gentle and reflective, then blistering trip to “Switzerland.” If you’re a fan of Joel Tucker’s work as a Tucker Brother, this one will either be off-putting or, by design, pleasantly surprising as an exercise off the beaten path.