The blog is back after a short break. The 5-year hiatus is due to the request of my main sponsor Nihil, producer of organic berries in Hungary.
Every time Nate Smith takes a drum solo, I feel like a kid in a candy store where the owner is not a paedophile.
The first time I saw Nate Smith perform live was on 15 November 2010 in Paris. At the infamous Duc des Lombards “jazz club” (where it became almost mandatory to order a pasta dish during a concert), he was playing with Chris Potter’s electric band Underground. The other members of the band are of course Craig Taborn on Fender Rhodes and Adam Rogers on guitar.
Maybe I had heard Nate before on a Dave Holland record or something, but I did not know Nate was Nate.
Because I was relatively late, I did not have a front row seat at that concert, but a place near the staircase. Which means more or less just to the left of the band’s drummer, whoever (s)he is.
The band was really explosive on that November evening. To admit that Chris Potter is one of the most important and brilliant saxophonists in human history, it is enough listening to him for a couple of choruses. Adam Rogers is extremely versatile and capable of doing almost everything on the guitar, while remaining poetic. Craig Taborn’s genius will keep surprising us. I am sure he knows almost as much as Jaki Byard on piano.
Let us focus on Nate Smith. Of course, he killed it, that night too. As he must have been doing so for his entire career.
I will try to reminisce as much as I can about that first set. I think Nate began playing with a leather jacket and took it off only half way into the concert. It was getting hotter in the venue because of central heating. But also because the band was really on fire and also because Nate’s brilliant performance (comping, soloing, supporting the band, structuring the pieces, etc.) is the result of a combination of intellectual and muscular powers. These powers emanate from a human body that is supposed to transpire from time to time, even though what he showcases is often executed without any manifest effort.
Nate’s playing that night with Chris Potter and co. was so powerful and impressive that I considered myself extremely lucky to be able to observe his artistry from less than two meters away. As I was saying, there is some muscle power in the mix, but it is only a tool of a wider approach that stems from a deep musical tradition. Being deeply rooted in that drumming tradition that goes back at least to the first half of the 20th century has all its meaning when the artist is someone who contributes his own language, novelty, flair and sheer brilliance. As it is the case with Nate Smith and so many of his colleagues like Brian Blade, Nasheet Waits, Marcus Gilmore, …
Anyway, that was the first time I saw a drummer put his towel on the floor tom (or another piece of the drum kit) and obtain a musical result from it.
More importantly, I realised something. Having being born in 1988 and gotten into improvised and creative music mostly around 2007, I never have had the chance of listening in person to the likes of Philly Joe Jones, Max Roach, Elvin Jones, Art Taylor, Art Blakey, Ed Blackwell, Billy Higgins, Tony Williams, … Which is quite normal.
But that night, Nate Smith, 35 at the time, a true heir to all these astounding spirits was there, sweating and giving all he had for every second of music.
Privilege, if such a thing should really exist I thought, should be limited to lucky instances like this: having the chance to witness such moments of artistry. So, ideally, everyone should be privileged on a more or less regular basis.
I cheered Nate along with other listeners that night, which is due to the overall excitement and maybe also due to rock elements in CP Underground’s music, I don’t know.
It was obvious to everyone in the room that Nate was more than amazing. So him being applauded and cheered at all times is more than due.
What struck me was how he was handling the situation. His reaction to the crowd’s praise was a reaction of sincere gratitude that one could easily read on his face. Playing music at that level means the musician is conscious of his expertise, virtuosity, hard work, etc. In other words, Nate Smith has known for a long time that he is an excellent drummer always trying to be at the top of his game. At that level of musicianship, it is not difficult to become arrogant and condescending, which also happens in jazz. Above all, Nate showed that he took nothing for granted and was genuinely humble.
On 9 July 2018, Nate Smith was back in Paris at La Petite Halle with his own band Kinfolk. His first time as a leader in Paris.
The band is so groovy that I have some optimism that young people can be attracted even by complex forms of BAM in the near future.
I won’t go into detail about last night’s concert, the post is already too long.
To go briefly (at least I tried):
° The band plays really enjoyable and sophisticated music that can be appreciated by a wide range of people.
° Jaleel Shaw plays alto and soprano in the band!
° Jon Cowherd (the cornerstone of Brian Blade’s Fellowship) was substituted by a really funky pianist/keyboardist. Should check him out too!
° Nate Smith is a hilarious guy. His difference with most professional stand-up comedians is that he is funny and plays the drums. See his bit on the Tiny Desk that is not so tiny, etc. He also told a memorable anecdote about Quincy Jones’ birthday party in Montreux that took place on 8 July 2018.
° The highlights of the performance were not only Nate’s solos, although they were the most exciting moments for me and most people in the room. The band’s chemistry is incredible. Be sure to check out their 2017 album Kinfolk: Postcards from Everywhere.
° One of Kinfolk’s most recent compositions is “Rambo: The Vigilante”. Nate says it is “short, but angry”. The shifting rhythms, timbres and styles easily make the piece a favourite of mine. Who knows, maybe Mozart would have been composing stuff like this, had he been a 21st century musician. Listen to the Tiny Desk version (link below).
° Nate is releasing a solo drums record on 23 July! One immediately can think of Max Roach’s Drums Unlimited (Atlantic, 1966) or Andrew Cyrille’s What About? (BYG Actuel, 1969) in a growing body of avant-garde albums.
° When he was ultimately called back on stage, Nate did a drum solo based on Max Roach’s “The Drum Also Waltzes”. The first time I listened to “The Drum Also Waltzes”, I learnt that drums are also a melodic instrument.
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* These profiles are not biographical accounts, but my subjective takes on artists I admire the most.
**BAM: Black American Music. Hats off to Lester Bowie and Nicholas Payton, and many others for pointing out why it is at the very least extremely problematic to say "jazz".
Links
Nate Smith Kinfolk’s NPR Tiny Desk concert: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peYcNm3JTe8
Nate Smith’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/natesmithdrums/
Nate Smith’s Fb: https://www.facebook.com/natesmithdrums/videos/the-show-must-go-on/10155659186959092/
Footage of Chris Potter Underground’s November 2010 stint in Paris: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xD6leUdCSQI&frags=pl%2Cwn
Nate Smith in Dave Holland Quintet: https://youtu.be/SxZDxQqHdy8?t=2m16s
