When progressive rock enthusiasts hear
Bill Bruford's name, they immediately think of his work with
Yes and
King Crimson. But it's important to remember that
Bruford is also a talented jazz instrumentalist, and the veteran drummer has demonstrated that he is comfortable appearing in a variety of jazz settings. On
Skin and Wire: Piano Circus featuring Bill Bruford Play the Music of Colin Riley,
Bruford's group
Piano Circus offers a cerebral, abstract mixture of post-bop and avant-garde jazz. This 2009 release isn't radically avant-garde;
Skin and Wire isn't the type of scorching, atonal free jazz that goes out of its way to be as abrasive as possible. Instead, an inside/outside perspective prevails -- one that is highly pianistic. It isn't hard to figure out why
Bruford calls this unit
Piano Circus; there are no less than four acoustic pianists and/or electric keyboardists on board (Adam Caird,
David Appleton, Semra Kuratac, and Kate Halsall), and they are an integral part of
Piano Circus' sound. However, all of the composing was done by Colin Riley, who provides some electronic programming. But despite that programming,
Skin and Wire doesn't really sound like electronica. It sounds like jazz, and very pianistic jazz at that. This is a drummer's group, but the pianist/keyboardists are so prominent that stylistically,
Skin and Wire ends up sounding like a cross between
Herbie Hancock (pre-
Headhunters),
Andrew Hill, and
Chick Corea on one hand and
Cecil Taylor and
Paul Bley on the other.
Skin and Wire isn't nearly as abrasive or confrontational as
Taylor is known for being;
Taylor, who wrote the book on free jazz pianism, has long had a reputation for being a firebrand. But there are elements of
Taylor's playing in some of the piano and keyboard solos.
Skin and Wire doesn't go out of its way to be accessible, although listeners who don't demand instant gratification from music will find this 59-minute CD to be a memorable contribution to post-bop and jazz' electric avant-garde.