Life & Umbrella, by Javier Red's Imagery Converter

Life & Umbrella

by Javier Red's Imagery Converter

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Javier Red's Imagery Converter "Life & Umbrella"Limited Edition Compact Disc, with artwork by the amazing renowned Mexican artist Carmen Chami!

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Full Digital Discography

6

releases

Get all 6 Desafio Candente Records releases available on Bandcamp and save 35%.

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Live in Chicago, Life & Umbrella, Kind Regards / Saludos Afectuosos, Desafío Candente, ESSE, and Snapshot. , and , .

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1.	Thoughts Unable To Be Contained 06:18	info	buy track
2.	The Happiness of Hope 03:42	info	buy track
3.	Imaginary Friend 06:41	info	buy track
4.	Brain Checking 07:58	info	buy track
5.	Umbrella 01:09	info	buy track
6.	Resilience Cycle 07:18	info	buy track
7.	This Is What They Found 04:10	info	buy track
8.	Life 00:54	info	buy track
9.	Interior World 08:10	info	buy track
10.	Different Tempos 05:19	info	buy track
11.	Choices 05:30	info	buy track
12.	Future, Umbrella & Life 11:22	info	buy track

about

Desafio Candente Records is proud to announce the May 12, 2023 release of Life & Umbrella, the latest release from Chicago-based pianist and composer Javier Red. Across twelve ambitious and complex compositions, Red divulges the profound reception of his son’s autism diagnosis alongside his daring four-piece ensemble Imagery Converter.

The potent working unit returns on its sophomore project here with drummer Gustavo Cortinas, bassist Ben Dillinger, saxophonist Jake Wark and Red at the helm. In 2019, Imagery Converter gained notoriety after its eponymous debut release, which was lauded by critics and named to NPR Jazz Critics’ Best Debut Albums of 2019. Leaning thoroughly on a contemporary aesthetic, the band is bounded by a collective approach to blurring the lines of composition and improvisation. Now, with the release of Life & Umbrella, Red maneuvers that familiar territory with meaningful introspection.

“There is little being done to teach neurotypicals to understand autistic persons,” Red shared in a statement. Even through its title, which addresses the autism range as an umbrella rather than a spectrum, Life & Umbrella challenges us to explore how we are conditioned to empathize with neurodivergent individuals. “Through music’s unique ability to create emotional connections with others, I hope to contribute to filling that empathy gap.”

Red extrapolates these ideas into musical concepts elevated by each member of Imagery Converter and achieved through several years of dedicated collective work. Drummer and composer Gustavo Cortiñas lends a grounded feel to the date, often providing a gravitas to the complex structures of this music. Most evident on compositions such as “This Is What They Found”, the drummer leads the ensemble through an ever-shifting rhythmic landscape, deeply grooving all the way through.

With a sumptuous crooning tone on the tenor sax, Jake Wark seamlessly partakes in the overall texture of the ensemble, often playing melodic and rhythmic fragments in unison with the group while creating thrilling moments of invention through improvisation. On “Resilience Cycle”, Wark manages to navigate the many angular edges of the composition effortlessly, continually prioritizing a sense of lyricism and finding compelling melodies to fit over Red’s tricky arrangement.

Bassist Ben Dillinger makes his role as the backbone of the group a heroic one, playing with astounding aplomb and assisting his bandmates with taking chances. Zooming in on his playing on “Brain Checking” for example, one can almost grasp some of the inner workings of Red’s writing thanks to Dillinger’s earnest clarity.

Red’s piano playing has an orchestral quality. He shifts between lush harmonies to playing intricate counterpoints, melodies and basslines often all within the same tune. This quality is maintained in his virtuosic solos as he continues to address these structural elements while simultaneously improvising. “We’ve had to explore an organic rhythmic approach not tied to conventional meters or recognizable jazz grooves. The result is music that is intuitive but also, seductively puzzling.”

Life & Umbrella finds four seasoned musicians assenting entirely to their leader’s concept and invites us to do the same. Each song title is symbolic and encompasses a relationship with the canopy of traits associated with autism. Creating a bridge of understanding for the listener, Red invites all to ponder his narrative abstractly and organically like its origins. Refraining from sentimentality, Javier Red’s writing is a means of expressing feeling, and the poignant output it delivers is sanctified by a quiet intensity.

credits

released May 12, 2023

Javier Red - Piano Gustavo Cortiñas - Drums Jake Wark - Tenor & Soprano Saxophones Ben Dillinger - Bass

Produced by Javier Red.
Recorded by Scott Steinman/ assisted by Jon San Paolo at Electrical Audio.
Mixed and Mastered by Scott Steinman at Studio Media Recording.
Art work by Carmen Chami.
Graphic Design by Alexis Ramirez Rivera.
All compositions by Javier Red (ASCAP) ® & Javier Red Music © 2023, ALL RIGHTS Reserved. Unauthorised copying, hiring, lending, and broadcasting prohibited.
Desafio Candente Records

This album is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Art Council Agency, through federal funds provided by the National Endowment for the Arts.
Is is also partially supported by an Individual Artist Program Grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events.

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about

Desafio Candente Records Chicago, Illinois

DCR is a label committed to releasing new, and original art music that challenges both ears and minds, seeking to bridge dialogue, understanding, inspiration and meaning in a world of border walls, ignorance and banality. DCR sounds are rooted in jazz, m-base, world music, folklore and contemporary chamber. DCR is directed by Mexico/Chicago composers and producers Gustavo Cortiñas & Javier Red. ... more