RadioAction
RadioAction is four young veterans of the jazz wars who have banded together to forge a group sound and indentity. All their 'shedding and gigging now pay off in music which is constantly evolving, as four friends listen to and add to each other, that old the-sum-is-greater-than-its-outstanding-parts game. RadioAction tells us that today's jazz can be direct and powerful and flexible and witty and textured, all at the same time. For music which heeds to a magnificent tradition while finding something new to say at every turn, turn here.
Tell me about your history? How did you get where you are now?
Why play it safe -- ever? That's the credo that spurs the impassioned new band, RadioAction. Jazz is supposed to be as daring as it is accomplished, and RadioAction is jazz without the safety net. Four fresh talents have come together, with something to say and a fervent, dynamic way of saying it. You can play hard, all the time, the energy non-stop at any tempo or volume, while always maintaining collective musically and inventiveness. That's what RadioAction is all about.
Remember these names: Alto saxophonist Alex Graham, pianist Whitney Ashe, bassist Gary Wang and drummer Matthew Jorgensen. Individually, they exude the excellence and exitement of enlightened apprenticeship, after training under and playing alongside the best players in the world, through years of jamming and gigging in the crucible of New York's many jazz clubs. Collectively, as this band of equals, RadioAction, they raise their music to the next level. Having learned to think, breathe, create and dance together, they have discovered the magical alchemy in which great abilities and great moments coalesce into unforgettable music.
And now, after five years of getting to know each other in various combinations in various settings, and after a year of honing their music together, RadioAction has released its first CD entitled HI-FI. A program of both standards and band originals explores many states of mind and music, all pursued ardently with a signature meshing of expressive freedom and tensile strength. From saxophonist Graham's take-no-prisioners Explosion, which opens proceedings at full bore and then finds reserve resources to reach fever pitch, through his ruminative, intense More or Less, here is a recording which holds nothing back. Dizzy Gillespie's Con Alma is both airy and sizzling, a neat trick. Their Russian Lullaby burns like mad, without sacrificing the melodic richness of Irving Berlin's composition. Pianist Ashe's contributions are lilting, yet also rhythmically and harmonically dense. Composition, arrangement and improvisation all receive their due, each phrase and voicing imbued with intelligence, inspiration and passion.
