Review: Waldo’s Gift – ‘A band on the edge’

I don’t think there’s anything more confusing than the word jazz… There are people that argue that “nothing is jazz other than the early forms of Dixieland” (Stan Kenton).

I turned to the 20th century avant-jazz musician in a bid to give myself some context for Waldo Gift’s night at Trinity celebrating the release of debut Malcolm’s Law – a post-prog, jazz-metal, wildly experimental album.

Is that ‘jazz’? Up to you. The trio is considered highly in jazz and other music circles alike for its extreme commitment to improvisation that makes the live show an  impossibly electric experience.

 

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From set opener, the bass thuds in our chests and guitarist Alun Elliot-Williams’ characteristically chewy and electronic math-rock riffs create complex top lines, while drummer and frontman James Vine is a sight and sound to behold – his is no background instrument.

From drum and bass rhythms with gunshot hi-hat, to syncopated grooves and massive rock fills, Vine sets the tone for each mini session the band embarks on (it feels wrong to call them songs).

It is rare for a band to be made up of just three people, though common in jazz of course, and even rarer for the  group to sound cohesive. This is no problem for James, Alun, and Harry who weave together their parts seamlessly and have a chemistry on par with The Police.

Celebrating their debut LP, the hometown show at Trinity was the trio’s biggest headline to date

After doing “90 minutes of made up shit every week for three years” at Gloucester Road’s Gallimaufry, Waldo’s Gift managed to distil that epic creative project into digital tracks for their debut album, each one recorded totally live.

Despite being turned down a few intensity notches from the live show, those tracks still transport the listener to a faraway, crazy sonic world.

Tonight we learn the inspiration behind the album name is a real life Malcolm who was an early supporter of Waldo’s, and is credited with the power to ‘make everything go right even when it shouldn’t’ –  what the band call Malcolm’s law.

The law is certainly in effect this evening. The frenetic pace barely lets up, apart from some good old false summits placed with incredible precision.

Waldo’s love to play with the crowd, leading us to trick cadences to leave us hanging in dissonance, before handing over long-awaited conclusions. This only sweetens the moments of peaceful serenity when they appear, which is about as often as an on time Bristol bus.

Then again, I’d be happy to argue that these insane journeys into the mind-bending depths of experimental improv are a type of serenity in themselves; myself and the many mullet- and flat cap-wearing people around me appear to be in  a trance.

The from-stage banter is good fun but has a way to go before it reaches the absurd and sometimes apple strudel-themed chitchat of other Bristol stalwart, Langkamer. With music as weird as this, Waldo’s could definitely lean into surrealism in speech as well as chords.

Waldo’s Gift is a band on the edge, making moves noone’s made before, with hardly a hint of  nostalgia. The Eras Tour this is not. This is the future in front of us, cracking open and unfolding as we watch. I think Stan Kenton would’ve been into it.

All images: Caitlin Johnson-Bowring

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