The trio of Chicagoan sax hero Dave Rempis, who plays the soprano, alto, tenor, and baritone saxes, vibes player Jason Adasiewicz, who is known for his extensive work with Peter Brötzmann and returned to playing music after a multi-year hiatus, and drummer Chris Corsano, who recently relocated to Chicago, is a local supergroup of prolific, down-to-earth, hard-working musicians. Rempis and Adasiewicz have worked closely in many formats and opportunities, and Rempis and Corsano played together in the quartet From Whales to Wolves (with trumpeter Nate Wooley and bassist Pascal Niggenkemper), but this is the first working trio of Adasiewicz and Corsano playing together.
This trio first played together at Chicago’s Hungry Brain during a month-long Thursday residency that Rempis organised in September 2024. The trio’s debut album, Dial Up, was recorded live in the following performances, at Constellation in Chicago in January 2025, and at The Sugar Maple in Milwaukee in February 2025.
The trio’s unorthodox instrumentation allows it to effortlessly explore and alternate between a wide spectrum of approaches and cyclical rhythmic possibilities. This ranges from powerful, intense, and fierce onslaughts to lyrical, bluesy, and more nuanced textures and pointillistic explorations, suggesting a collaborative, highly energetic free jazz that meets free improvisation. Rempis, Adasiewicz, and Corsano always use their commanding voices in the service of the spontaneous, intuitive music, creating passionate, layered storms in a non-hierarchical flow that reflects their extensive experience, wisdom, and deep camaraderie, as well as the legacy of the Chicagoan improvised scene. When this great trio locks in a collective interplay, as on the 18-minute “One Dollar Cheaper” or the last piece “Third Person”, nothing can stop it.
Rempis / Adasiewicz / Corsano – Dial Up (Aerophonic, 2025)
