From percaso productions in Zürich, Switzerland, comes a delightful little group with an odd moniker. DAY & TAXI‘s debut All (percaso production 11; 63:55 (4 out of 5 stars)) comes packaged with a gorgeous Gilbert & George painting on the cover and a disc chock full of jubilant trio music. 

Though clearly situated in a jazz/improvised music milieu characterized by formal structures (tunes), lyricism, swing-to-free rhythmic underpinning, solos, trades and the like, a refreshing inferential quality pervades DAY & TAXI‘s program ... the music, imbued with an open breathing quality, strikes an admirable unselfconscious balance between the cerebral and the visceral, the direct and the oblique.

DAY & TAXI plays an appealing brand of post-modern jazz. Original compositions –primarily by Gallio and bassist Lindsay L. Cooper–have an abstract angularity and coolness often regarded as an European style........On the average, the pieces on this CD are between three and seven minutes, so while there is room for some free blowing and extended techniques from Gallio, the general mood is one of control and economy if not actual restraint. The three group members are nicely attuned to each other, and while the distinctiveness of Gallio‘s reeds usually place him front and center, Cooper and Ulrich have a substantial amount of solo space. Even when they aren‘t soloing, the nature of the music and the group dynamic allow them to be much more than a “rhythm section,“ and they take full advantage of their opportunities. 

... then they offer a version of Noel Coward‘s „Mad About The Boy“ which is one of the best decomposing jobs I‘v heard since Sunny Murray‘s Paris band did „The Nearly Was Mine“ back in 1969. It serves to emphasize the point. 

DAY & TAXI is a Swiss jazz trio whose music is an inventive and engaging balance between the seemingly abstract avant-garde (how long does avant-ness last, anyway?) and the necessities of swing and rhythmic impetus. Most European jazz/improv performers get stuck with the „too cerebral/can‘t swing“ tag, but DAY & TAXI avoid this, while still maintaining their „Euro“ sound and tradition – as opposed to merely emulating what they perceive to be an „American“ sound ... and Ulrich‘s crisp playing maintain the the supple and elastic forward-motion of swing, even at the more abstract moments. It‘s this quality that separates DAY & TAXI from the many squeak-and-doodle outfits that couldn‘t swing if you spotted them a trapeze. DAY & TAXI play appealing, challenging and accessible compositions and improvisations, a singular combination. 

DAY & TAXI hails from Switzerland, though the bassist Lindsay Cooper is originally from Scotland. With Gallio and Ulrich, this group‘s release is yet another indicator of a very vibrant improvised music scene in that landlocked European fiefdom. Of all discs reviewed here, the recording quality of this one is nothing short of magnificent, the bass fully resonant, the reeds vibrant in all registers and the drum alive without being overbearing in the mix. (Audiophiles take note!) Of greater concern here, the music enclosed in this is lively indeed and all musicians are well attuned to each other, whether they be playing with a beat or working out a collective improvisation. Even if this isn‘t music to rattle windows by (exept if you boost your bass level knob), this release is a highly enjoyable one. 

... parmis les autres, on relève la formation DAY & TAXI de Christoph Gallio. Ce saxophoniste zurichois pratique un jazz qui ne renie pas son attirance naturelle vers le free, participant ainsi à un mouvement de renaissance que les ennemis de la pencée unique – en musique, ça existe aussi – applaudissent avec joie.

Gallio et Ulrich font très, très jeunes sur les photos à côté de Papa Cooper, mais les différences s‘arrêtent là. Question musique, il vous prennent par l‘oreille avec toute la delicatesse de leur art, et ne vous lâchent que rarement à travers une longue série de compositions brèves qui ont toujours de quoi enchanter l‘oreille par laquelle il vous ont pris – et l‘autre oreille aussi. Evidement, il faut se préparer à des surprisese constantes, à des ruptures de ton, à des idées saugrenues de la part des musiciens, à une certaine déroute de la part de l‘auditeur. Mais il y a aussi le plaisir de l‘inattendu et de se laisser agréablement secouer. Qui plus est, Gallio se paie un son très prenant sur ses deux instruments. Les deux autres n‘étant pas en reste, le disque tourne rond par tous ses côtes. 

Satte 63 Minuten mit 13 Stücken Improvisation von Lindsay Cooper, b, Christoph Gallio, ss, as, und Dieter Ulrich, dr, Signalhorn, vor denen jeder Rubrizierungszwang versagt. DAY & TAXI erforscht abstrakte Geräusch- und Tonwelten, lässt sich auf merkwürdig vertrackte und verquere Rhythmen ein, swingt plötzlich wie der Teufel, und wird plötzlich stachelig und spröde. Improvisierte Musik auf hohem Niveau, die man oft höten muss, um hinter möglichst viele der brillanten Ideen und Einfälle zu kommen. 

Einfach macht es einem Christoph Gallio nicht: Der Avantgarde-Saxophonist zählt bewusst zu den sperrigeren Musikern der Schweizer Jazzszene. Gleichwohl lohnt sich die (scheinbare) Hörarbeit, die einem die CD All des Trios DAY & TAXI ausnötigt. Denn hinter abstrakten, die Tradition des Hardbop aufgreifenden und gleichzeitig zerbröselnden Musik von Gallio, Dieter Ulrich und Londsay L. Cooper klingt immer wieder konkrete, zuweilen gar schelmisch swingende Lustbarkeit an. Wenn es so etwas wie Freiräume zwischen strengem Anspruch und herzhafter Musik gibt – hier sind sie.