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Reviews of “In Other Words”

★ ★ ★ ★  Troy Dostert, All About Jazz, May 2024

Adventurous listeners who have been following the separate journeys of saxophonist Silke Eberhard, trumpeter Nikolaus Neuser and drummer Christian Marien have reason to rejoice whenever their paths converge, as they do once again in their trio I Am Three. Originally conceived as a Charles Mingus tribute project on its debut, Mingus, Mingus, Mingus (Leo Records, 2016), and a follow-up with vocalist Maggie Nicols on Mingus’ Sounds of Love (Leo Records, 2019), I Am Three still retains a faint connection to the mercurial bass legend, choosing this album’s title, In Other Words, from the opening words of Mingus’ 1971 autobiography, Beneath the Underdog. (The trio’s name is the remainder of the sentence.) There are no Mingus covers here, however, as the musicians are instead showcasing their own compositions. That is all to the good, as these three have plenty to say, with delightfully brisk, energetic exchanges which reveal the players’ distinctive trio vocabulary.

It is a relatively short album, coming in at under forty minutes with eleven tracks. Nevertheless, it feels the right size as there is no meandering. Rather, Eberhard, Neuser and Marien give each piece its due, with plenty of strong playing and focused interactions, without getting bogged down in pointless digressions. Although Eberhard may be the best known of the three, she is limited to two compositions here, “Birthday Song” and “Fast Slow,” both of which exhibit her trademark craftiness, having well-designed structures with generous room for maneuvering. Neuser especially shines on these cuts, with growls and splutterings alternating with limpid precision, and always in close rapport with Eberhard, while Marien manages both to maintain the pulse and to offer creative interjections throughout.

Marien composed five tracks, characterized by his usual feisty unpredictability. His penchant for a strong groove and tricky melodies is clearly realized on the almost too-brief opener, “Übersprungshandlung,” not to mention the tempestuous, ironically-named “Pattersson Blues,” which is not a blues. It is just another of Marien’s wily compositions, played at a fast clip with razor-sharp unison lines from Eberhard and Neuser. Not to be outdone, Neuser contributes some terrific pieces too, with “Wait a Second” providing another ideal vehicle for the two horns’ impassioned banter, and Marien’s relentlessly punchy drumming keeping things barrelling forward. The album’s closing track, Neuser’s “Poem for Valentin,” is especially arresting, with Marien providing a foundation of ominous rumblings on the toms while Eberhard and Neuser convey the piece’s searching lyricism.

Fueled by three players with an abundance of skill and creativity, In Other Words leaves nothing wanting in its choice to move beyond Mingus, and it is certainly worthy of repeated encounters.

Reviews of “Mingus, Mingus, Mingus”

Paul J. Jalet, June 2016.

“This superb and surprising infernal trio with the appearance of a libertarian equilateral triangle is made up of three energetic Berlin musicians. In this high-energy mini-group, there are no sidemen but three solid soloists brought together to joyfully celebrate the generous and eternal music of Charles Mingus, the angry man: the petulant alto saxophonist Silke Eberhard, disciple of Eric Dolphy and Ornette Coleman, the exuberant acrobatic trumpeter Nikolaus Neuser and the robust and dynamic drummer Christian Marien.

These intrepid Germans take risks and dare to interpret the timeless hits of the great Charles M with verve and mischief, without double bass or piano. This appealing instrumental bias enhances this festive music by shedding new light on it.

This uninhibited trio breaks down barriers like the sparkling Barondown of the mischievous American drummer Joey Baron. Propelled by an ever-boiling drum kit, Silke Eberhard and Nikolaus Neuser compete in inventiveness to create with this veritable powerhouse a powerful, very fluid free-bop jazz. Long live Mingus!”

★ ★ ★ ★  Troy Dostert, All About Jazz, September 2016

In addition to her many other projects, German alto saxophonist Silke Eberhard has made her mark by delving into the jazz tradition via her own distinctive, forward-looking sound. She collaborated with pianist Aki Takase in 2007 on Ornette Coleman’s compositions (Ornette Coleman Anthology, Intakt), and she’s done some fantastic work with her larger ensemble Potsa Lotsa in tribute to Eric Dolphy; in this regard, last year’s superb Plays Love Suite by Eric Dolphy (jazzwerkstatt) is truly a must-listen for all Dolphy fans. It should be understood right from the beginning that Eberhard’s treatment of these figures is never just a repertory exercise. Eberhard consistently brings a creative, risk-taking sensibility to her re-imagining of this material that always results in pushing the tradition forward—as we should expect from all of the best music infused with the spirit of jazz.

And this release is certainly no different. With trumpeter Nikolaus Neuser and drummer Christian Marien, Eberhard’s latest project I Am Three involves a playful, energetic, utterly infectious exploration of the work of Charles Mingus. To tackle some of Mingus’s best-known (and a few less-known) pieces without a bass instrument—or piano, for that matter—requires a certain audacity, but that’s typical of Eberhard’s approach, and here it works wonderfully, largely due to Eberhard’s clever arrangements and the top-flight musicianship on display.

One conscious choice Eberhard made was to go short: that is, to limit the length of the pieces to around three to four minutes each on average. This boils each song down to its core, a distillation process that reminds us of how beautiful and profound Mingus’s melodies were—something that could be obscured amidst the musical pyrotechnics of his sprawling live recordings in particular. In addition, the written horn parts for Eberhard and Neuser are outstanding. One never misses the richness of a larger group, even on an iconic big-band cut like “Moanin.'” Surprisingly, Eberhard’s alto works perfectly for that opening phrase Pepper Adams’s baritone made famous, and from there she and Neuser, fueled by Marien’s relentless groove, produce a tour-de-force of trio improvising.

None of this would be possible without the phenomenal chops of these musicians. Both Eberhard and Neuser are capable of playing squarely in the pocket and also venturing out into the extremes of improvisation as well, although always in service to the music. They have an outstanding rapport, really digging into simultaneous solo passages that complement each other perfectly. And an absolutely essential component of this trio is the chameleon-like drumming of Marian. He’s as likely to offer a funk-or rock-based beat as a straight swing rhythm, and his shape-shifting contributions do the most to give this recording its contemporary feel. The funky groove he moves in and out of on “Fables of Faubus” is irresistible in offering a completely distinctive flavor to the piece. Finally, we also have some of Eberhard’s trademark quirks and idiosyncracies as well, just to keep the listener a little unmoored. “Jelly Roll” deliberately winks at the way the record as a whole is in dialogue with the past, by interspersing an “old-timey” vinyl sound (pops and crackles included) with the much more polished, digital-era sound of the rest of the track. And judicious use of electronics adds to the atmospheric quality of “Eclipse” and “Canon.”

Of the many ways in which this record honors Mingus, it’s really its spirit of inventiveness that stands out the most. A terrific accomplishment, and a strong contender for one of 2016’s best releases.

★ ★ ★ ★ Kurt Gottschalk, DownBeat Magazin, NYC, September 2016

“[…] boldness in approach and interpretation, and that’s every bit as true for Mingus Mingus Mingus, […] which takes the great man’s sentiment, “I am three,” as a band name. The music is stripped down to an unlikely trio of sax, trumpet (Nikolaus Neuser) and drums (Christian Marien), leaving Mingus’ two instruments (bass and piano) by the wayside.
It’s only by virtue of their economically crafty arrangements that the re-workings never seem thin or hollow. So confident are they in their approach that by “Jelly Roll,” the ninth of 12 tracks on this CD, they begin to dampen melodic sections as if to underscore how full the rest of the album sounds.

That’s only after a round of successes, of course. The trio marches through Better Get Hit In Yo’ Soul,” does a pounding rendition of “Moanin’” and plays a wonderfully lyrical “Self-Portrait In Three Colors” (underscoring again Mingus’s trifurcated personality).

“Fables Of Faubus” is filled out by some exceptional mute-work by Neuser, and throughout the session Marien capably fills the lower register with bass and toms. The group’s “Orange Was The Color Of Her Dress, Then Blue Silk” uses the dual linearity of the two front line instruments to great advantage, making it dance.

Mingus looms all too large in progressive jazz of the last century to ever be forgotten. He’s too enigmatic a figure to replicate. To varying degrees, such diverse figures as Jean Derome, Joni Mitchell and Hal Willner—not to mention the standing Mingus Big Band and Mingus Orchestra—have attempted to fit into his shoes. This German double-horn trio stands up with the best of them.”