Ethan Philion

Gnosis

Sunnyside

We covered bassist Ethan Philion’s debut as a leader, 2022’s Meditations on Mingus on the pages. Now Philion returns with his second, a departure from the large 10-piece ensemble he led then, paring down to a quartet to render mostly his own originals on Gnosis. The rarely heard term means knowledge that we acquire through experience rather than explicit teaching or in a spiritual context, the awareness of a spiritual presence, both of which can easily be applied to improvisational jazz and interplay between well connected players that comprise his chordless quartet – Greg Ward (alto saxophone), Russ Johnson (trumpet), and Dana Hall (drums). Johnson and Hall played on the previous effort while Ward, who leads his own Rogue Parade and plays as a sideman in multiple contexts, took Philion under his wing when the bassist was earning his Masters at DePaul University. Philion presents six compositions averaging nine minutes each, all originals except one to his major influence again, “What Love” by Mingus.

“The Boot” begins with high pitched jabs from both Ward and Johnson before the ensemble theme develops and cedes to spirited improvised solos from Johnson, Ward, and the leader with Hall spurring him along before the two exchange roles prior to the ensemble rejoining to take it out. “Sheep Shank” is arguably even a bit more energetic as Hall enters in whirlwind fashion before the horns alternate between choppy and sustained lines. After the first major drum break, we hear robust plucking from Philion and the tune itself seems to reverse the typical roles with Ward and Johnson supporting the bassist and drummer instead of the reverse. Nonetheless each horn gets ample opportunity to declaratively state their case, each carefully building their solo while the bass-drum tandem motors beneath at a faster pace.

“Nostalgia” begins so quietly that you many need to check your volume. Philion is plucking more gently than in the previous tracks, using a technique called “pinch harmonics” by fingering and plucking different notes with the same hand. Johnson expresses the yearning, melancholic melody after Ward jumps in later with a lilting, fluid solo but it’s the blend of the two horns that’s especially impressive in the middle and ending sections. “Comment Section” is a a fiery chaotic blast of mostly free improvisation combined with scalar sequences, all headed toward the “drunken quarter-note motif that ends the piece,” those last set of words from Philion. (and those last few notes are indeed riveting). Here he uses the bow rather unconventionally. As the sonics reflect, there’s anger and vitriol in what Philion casts as “…the unending number of people sharing their bigotry and hatred in comment sections everywhere.”  Conversely in the hymnlike title track Philion is using his bow conventionally as Hall takes to brushes initially before the piece morphs into a swinging mode, replete with lively separate and blended statements from Ward and Johnson, capped by Philion, who takes it out.

Philion’s reading of Mingus’ “What Love” bridges two versions, the icon’s studio version, Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus on Candid, and one of this writer’s favorite live jazz albums, Mingus at Antibes on Atlantic. The latter (reaching for my vinyl) has Eric Dolphy on bass clarinet, Ted Curson on trumpet, Booker Ervin on tenor, and Dannie Richmond on drums with Bud Powell as special guest. It’s a 13 and half minute track that completely consumes Side 2 of the original. Philion, with two fewer musicians to account for, stretches his to 11 minutes, allowing his bandmates to solo and interact with each freely in the spirit of Mingus’ many changing moods and colors.

Philion is not just a Mingus acolyte and interpreter; he proves his mettle as both a leader and composer in this fine outing of inspired, mostly heated material.

• Jim Hynes

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