Pendulum- Togetherness

2009 is a big year for Togetherness, a stellar quartet whose players will be familiar to anyone with a keen eye on the Dublin jazz scene, and currently riding high on critical acclaim for their first CD. Released by the Living Room Project, the band's eponymous debut was a recent Irish Times CD of the Week, praised for its undeniable group chemistry, harmonic and rhythmic flexibility, and moments of individual brilliance from all four members. Setting aside the Hammond B3 and returning to the piano has stimulated some exemplary small group writing from Justin Carroll, characterized by shifts in meter, and performed by musicians who clearly enjoy unpicking his rhythmic knots. Tenor saxophonist Michael Buckley now seems to have few impediments to melodic expression every time he plays, word is definitely out in the global jazz community about drummer Sean Carpio, and Simon Jermyn is evolving a brilliantly innovative and very personal concept of the electric bass.