Our first CD titled simply esp
was released on Oct. 20, 1999 with an outstanding response from critics.
Aficionados of the local scene will recognize each of these veteran instrumentalists from other incarnations: Magnante often plays for popular dance bands such as Atlas and Soft Spoken; Vacanti previously provided the bottom for the jazz combo Blue Norther and has played with many of Syracuse's jazz luminaries; Rimehaug now plays r'n'b with Dave Hanlon's Cookbook and previously performed with the nine-piece Steely Dan cover band Royal Scam; and Palumbo is best known for his work with the Homel-Alaniz Band, a Grateful Dead tribute act.
When they play out, ESP entertains audiences with a wide variety of instrumental jazz, from Pat Metheny's "Phase Dance" to Charlie Parker's "Scrapple from the Apple." This all-instrumental disc, however, is an outlet for the band members' own original material, with nine tracks of straight-ahead, smooth contemporary jazz punched up with touches of Latin and funk.
Like all good telepathists, ESP begins by meditating deeply on its first cut "Sebastian," a languid, dreamy composition by Stein Rimehaug, wisely followed by an uptempo "Black and Blue Bossa," featuring a sweaty guitar workout by its creator, Magnante. The "Bossa" piano parts, although ably performed by Rimehaug, seem slightly undermixed as compared to the stingingly authoritative guitar lines.
The third track, "Tongue in Cheek," also written by Magnante, starts slowly with a musing guitar that then plays in tandem with Rimehaug's various synthesizer sounds. The vibes riff quizzically to echo and then join the guitar, while Vacanti and Palumbo hold it all together.
Vacanti, who alternates string bass with an electric Pedulla fretless, shines brightly on "Eclipse," a number he wrote himself. As a brass sound resonates in the background and Magnante's guitar skitters over Palumbo's shimmering cymbals, Rimehaug's swelling synthesizer is complemented by a mid-range bass solo in which Vacanti makes his four-string actually sound like a guitar.
After Magnante's bluesy, fast-paced "Toxic Obnoxious" and Rimehaug's "Peruvian Dreams," Vacanti contributes another composition called "Lakefront." The carefree tone poem, cleanly arranged and carefully performed, conjures images of glacier lakes and azure skies.
Rimehaug, who hails from Norway, brings a decidedly wide worldview to ESP's music in his songs "Peruvian Dreams" and "Q." In "Dreams," his synthesizer mimics the breathy sound of Incan pan pipes laying a declarative melody line over an oddly regimented rhythm, while Magnante hints at flamenco before frantically fingering a cascade of quick and tasty licks.
On the other hand, Rimehaug's "Q" features his heavily syncopated wooden vibes sound, making this track a clever follow-up to Vacanti's laid-back "Lake Front." On "Q," Magnante and Rimehaug go to town with a fetching series of unison lines before the guitarist slows it all down before rejoining the keyboard for the head. Here Rimehaug delivers a beautiful, well-conceived acoustic piano solo, now mixed in just right. As though challenged by the keyboard, Magnante rises to greater heights for an excellent, ascending solo climaxing in a fretboard festa and ending with a reunion with Rimehaug's xylophone sound.
On the album's final track, "Song for Patti," Magnante demonstrates his affinity for the work of jazz guitar legend Wes Montgomery. Comfortable and quiet, Magnante's "Song" is an elegant guitar paean for some certain Patricia. The guitarist's perfectly shaped phrases paint a portrait of sheer sensuality, as guest drummer Bill D'Agostino and bassist Vacanti add subtle support with brushes and unobtrusive bass lines.
Produced by ESP engineered by bassist Matt Vacanti, ESP introduces one of the area's most creative collaborations of 1999.
For ESP information, call Matt Vacanti at 457-1935 or e-mail him at Mvacanti@aol.com. The quartet's website can be accessed via http://members/aol/com/espjazz/esp.html.