4/2/20:
Hardly fake

Michael Joseph Harris has spent some time with Django Reinhardt's music. By some time, I'm thinking pretty much all the time. He composes for both Ultrafaux and the Hot Club of Baltimore (as near as I can tell, the Hot Club tends to have more members on stage at one time, though the personnel seem to circulate amongst both acts freely). And while he draws from all sorts of jazz and folk influences, that gypsy strum always seems to make its way back.



Ultrafaux
Tangent
(self-released)


Unlike Reinhardt, Harris doesn't feel constrained by the limited length of a 78 (which is why so many surviving jazz recordings from the 20s and 30s consist of songs three minutes or shorter). Indeed these songs tend to roam even as they wind up tighter and tighter. It's a neat trick that must be awesome to see live--and had it not been for a certain virus, I would have had lots of chances in the coming months. Oh well.

The twists and turns of this style can be overbearing, but the ensemble maintains a light touch. This isn't a Formula 1 course; it's an afternoon gambol on the fall line. While I'm sure there's a person who could manage a frown while listening to this, I don't want to meet them. They can frown on their own time, not mine.

Never heavy, never precious. And while the personnel varies from song to song, it's clear the players have a wonderful rapport. Each line blends into the next with intricate intimacy and skill. Just spectacular.

Jon Worley


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