David Preston - Purple / Black (Vol. 1) (2023)

When David Preston started composing for the project that became his first solo LP, he opened up some fascinating new perspectives. In contrast to his acclaimed work with high-octane fusioneers Preston/Glasgow/Lowe he found himself drawn to simple forms, textures and moods - ‘not going full tilt all the time’. To realise his vision, he assembled a cast of extraordinary musical explorers. Building on his relationship with six-string bassist Kevin Glasgow as a foundation, he chose multi-genre drummer Seb Rochford, equally at home playing with the avante-jazz of Polar Bear as he is with pop sensation Adele, and rounded the team off with front-rank composer, arranger, pianist and organist Kit Downes - all players whose approach could simultaneously encompass both simplicity and deep complexity, and match the freedom to improvise with a respect for the concision and directness of the song. David took them into the studio and the band instantly gelled, diving into a mammoth session that yielded enough material for two full albums. Volume 1 - Purple / Black is the first offering - a coherent suite of song-form tunes whose direct, uncluttered melodicism conceals hidden depths that reveal themselves anew at each listen.

‘O Winston’ encapsulates the vibe: a propulsive four-note ostinato from Kevin Glasgow is the backbone for a track that builds up into layers of lilting Americana, with fascinating interplay between David and Kit Downes. ‘Kevin is one of the few bassists who can play absolutely anything, but can also just hold it down with total conviction when needed’. An analogue synth provides the shiny 80s-pop backdrop for ‘Casino Dream’, with Seb Rochford demonstrating his mastery of understated studio chops under some burning guitar/piano interaction ‘Seb enables us all to play less. He’s a master in the studio’. ‘Ur-Text’ builds from a hushed, spacious duet with Kit into a towering, dramatic climax.

David explored his earlier influences in rock and pop to get away from the homogenously angular sound of much contemporary jazz. So ‘Purple Black’ based around David’s favorite power chords to create a sombre, monumental character, intense but uplifting - ‘the very first time we played it, it came alive just as I hoped it would’, ‘Blues Clemens’ is an abstract blues that lets Seb Rochford show his empathy with space, restraint and texture, and ‘Salem Ascending’ has an accessible Americana-flavored melodicism given depth and character by Kit’s explorations. By contrast ‘Prison Lullaby’ builds around five angular melodic cells to create a powerful sense of unease, while ‘VHS Poem’ is a Preston/Glasgow/Lowe fusion classic slowed down to allow the song’s brooding, intense character to shine, and ‘Shades Of Shibuya’ has a minimalist approach that evokes powerful atmospheres - ‘Kit completely nailed that vibe with his immaculate sense of time and harmony - trying to match his flow really kicked my ass!’. The album closes with ‘Susie Qs’ - an almost-straight-ahead non-standard with some subtle twists.

The album encompasses the creative depth and breadth of jazz, but has the immediacy and presence of more direct popular music forms, brought to life by the inspired playing of the band. ‘I could have brought the same music to a lot of other great musicians and they might not have treated it as seriously because it’s so simple. But Kevin, Seb and Kit understood it instinctively - you can still be creative and interactive on these simple tunes.’ It’s a bold step but one that pays off again and again.