Trio X, The Watermelon Suite

The Watermelon Suite offers another set of sublime austerity from the increasingly prolific Joe McPhee who, interestingly enough, chooses to focus exclusively on soprano sax in this Trio X setting. The disc commences with "Points" well taken, as McPhee’s spacious overtones are ensnared by Jay Rosen’s minimalist flypaper percussion. From there McPhee delves into the disc’s namesake centerpiece, a four part series of duets with bassist Dominic Duval that encompasses a plethora of expressive modes: "The Whole" mixes a lilting dialogue of gently fractured lines and dissonant implications under the auspices of an Eastern reference; "The Rind" uses a precarious tremolo to make room for a frenetic give-and-take; "The Meat" reintroduces the Eastern presence through Duval’s bowed multiphonics and McPhee’s persistent redefinition of space; and "The Seeds" spits out an abrasive fluidity as Duval sticks closely to the upper register (matching McPhee’s timbre instead of contrasting it). Following the suite, the trio reconvenes for the session’s even more cohesive and exploratory remainder (except for Duval and Rosen’s intermission at "Soundboard Safari"). "Wecotdo" is presented in two parts, the first finding Rosen’s anticlimactic reaction creating tension out of McPhee and Duval’s explosive entrance, while the second capitalizes on intensity as Rosen urges McPhee to a wringing, note-exhausting soprano vertex; "Solero" and "A Ballad in their Own Way" are similar ballad variations with gorgeous melodies extemporized by McPhee; and "Putter Piece" captures McPhee’s distorted proclamation slowly pooling out to enclose Duval and Rosen’s incremental swells, only to build to a final siren blast/extremist blowing over dense percussion. The session ultimately closes with the trio’s intriguing take on "My Funny Valentine," beginning with an energetic empathy swinging over double-timed pulsations that then fans out at midpoint to embrace the song’s inherent lyricality. Overall, while McPhee’s liner notes’ explanation of the group’s moniker is alone worth the money spent on the disc, the music’s finely tuned temporality and structural ingenuity make The Watermelon Suite a consistent addition to the multi-instrumentalist’s recorded output.