Gordian Knot To Release New Album Next Year
By
Sefany Jones,
Contributing Editor
Sunday, December 15, 2002 @ 11:05 AM
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Bassist and composer Sean Malone's Gordian Knot project makes a welcome return to the recording scene early next year with the release of Emergent on the Sensory label. Emergent is the second Gordian Knot release and Malone has assembled a stellar group of musicians for one of the most highly anticipated progressive releases of the last few years.
Malone is joined by onetime Cynic bandmate Jason Gobel on guitar and the legendary Yes/King Crimson drummer Bill Bruford. This is the trio Sean describes as the "core group," with a mind-blowing array of guests helping to fill out the sound: Steve Hackett on guitar (Genesis), Jim Matheos on guitar (Fates Warning), and fellow Cynic players Paul Masvidal (guitar) and Sean Reinert (drums). Playing with these musicians is something Sean describes as "simply incredible." Regarding Bruford's participation, Sean describes what it felt like to weave his bass lines around the drum acrobatics of one of the craft's most highly-regarded talents: "Bill Bruford is one of the most original, creative, and influential musicians in the genre. I grew up listening to Yes and King Crimson, and now to collaborate with him is something almost beyond description. I'm not embarrassed to admit that as I reflect on our recording sessions, there's always some sense of disbelief. While recording, he described the music on this disc as 'the kind of music our fans wish King Crimson would write, only we haven't gotten around to it.' I'm grateful he thought enough of the music to participate."
Sean Malone's work has spanned enormous sonic breadth. He has played as a session member for groups ranging from Brazilian jazz to English pop. One of his most remarkable achievements was as the recording/touring bassist for Floridian technical metal unit Cynic during their Focus period. Since their disbanding in 1994, Sean has continued as a studio bassist, performing on over fifty records to date. Throughout all this, he has authored two books, Dictionary Of Bass Grooves and A Portrait of Jaco: The Solos Collection for the Hal Leonard Corporation. Sean's work in the academic world is also notable, having had papers on theory and music cognition published, and given presentations at prestigious conferences including the Society for Music Theory and The Glenn Gould Conference. He currently teaches Music Theory at the University of Oregon while he completes his Ph.D.The eponymous Gordian Knot debut album, released in 1998, saw Sean team up with luminaries like Sean Reinert (Cynic), Trey Gunn (King Crimson), Ron Jarzombek (Watchtower, Spastic Ink) and John Myung (Dream Theater). The album was not so much a showcase for Sean's extraordinary capabilities on the bass and the Stick as it was a cohesive, focused, and balanced recording that featured compositions. Whether in a supportive or lead role, each member contributed to music that can only be described as a solid team effort. The music itself revolved around an esoteric axis, visiting spiritual, contemplative, and tense plateaus.
Now, in 2002, Gordian Knot is ready to present its second release, Emergent. Similar to the debut, Emergent is what Sean describes as "instrumental music written from a vocal perspective. There is structure similar to vocal music where you expect verses and choruses, though the verses are through-composed solo sections, and choruses retain an integrated melodic framework. In other words, it's not just jamming." However, being a band with a constant aim to move forward, there are some new textures and approaches to this album, as well. Sean: "On this one, the compositional arc is larger. It's contains a wide gamut of textures, and there's a little more focus on melody, something to bring it all together."
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