MUSIC

The Bell, Bath (Mon 10 Oct)

“There are some people that, when they tell you they have a new project, you simply book them in.” Thus Bell honchissimo Steve Henwood explaining how this lot got only their third ever gig on the pub’s hotly contested stage. And it’s immediately apparent that his trust is amply rewarded, as The Duval Project fires on all five cylinders to produce their thumping brand of contemporary jazz funk. Mainman Gary Alesbrook squares his flugelhorn up to the mic in a combative stance, braced against the thuggish precision of drummer Danny Cox’s unusual three-snare kit. Richie Blake’s impeccably funky bass locks things effortlessly, Andy Nowak scratches up a keyboard ghost of Herbie Hancock, and Ruth Hammond takes her tenor sax from Dexter Gordon to Dick Heckstall-Smith in microseconds. The tunes are all Gary’s originals with the exception of Leon Russell’s ‘This Masquerade’ and that’s the only weak link in the set, Cox’s fearsome drumming too much at odds with Alesbrook’s smooth trumpet. This isn’t a ballads band, anyway, and it works best when given its pedal-to-the-metal head, roaring from Earth, Wind & Fire grandeur to sharper Miles On The Corner cool. It’s a retro style, perhaps, but sounds as fresh as anything, not least because of the seismic angularity of that drumming and a unanimous commitment to the music. If they’re this good after only three gigs, then pretty soon they’ll be amazing. (Tony Benjamin)

Copyright Tony Benjamin 2011