BEN WENDEL

BaRcoDe

Edition Records

Ben Wendel, tenor saxophone/EFX; Joel Ross, vibraphone/marimba; Simon Moullier, vibraphone/chromatic balafon/EFX; Patricia Brennan, vibraphone/EFX; Juan Diego Villalobos, vibraphone/mallet station/percussion/EFX.

Ben Wendel’s tenor saxophone roars into the studio and lays a blanket of improvised sound across a marimba led rhythm section.  The music reminds me a bit of Indonesian folk/jazz. I have always been fascinated by those sounds similar to the Angklung instrument.  Wendel has employed vibraphone, chromatic balafon and EFX into his arrangements, giving this marimba influenced, modern/contemporary jazz album a sound of its own.

“Mimo” starts out sounding like a grandfather clock pendulum.  When Ben Wendel flutters on top of the drip-drop sound, his tenor saxophone tone is beautiful. He’s a pacesetter, with this latest album arranged for saxophone and mallets that blurs the line between electronic experimentation, straight ahead jazz, and chamber music.  He developed this soundscape between 2023 and 2025, at The Jazz Gallery.  Then, recorded this album at The Bunker Studio in Brooklyn, New York. Bravo!  I’m loving this concept.

All the players in his ensemble are A-listers. Patricia Brennan is celebrated for her work with Mary Halvorson and John Zorn, using exploratory techniques on vibraphone and EFX.  Juan Diego Villalobos brings his Venezuelan, Afro-Caribbean traditions and experimental electronics to the party. Joel Ross is a blue Note recording artist who reviewers claim is redefining the vibraphone in jazz.

Simon Moullier has customized his vibraphone, using quarter tones, and was praised by the late, great Quincy Jones and gold record pianist, Herbie Hancock. When you put all this talent into one studio, you are bound to release an award-winning project and a delight for human ears.

Reviewed by Dee Dee McNeil

 

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