The term “jam band” is insufficient in describing what Sokoband is all about. It’s a term that carries a certain crunchiness, evoking images of tie-dyed shirt-wearing festival attendees traveling across the country to see their favorite ensemble play. This is not to say that Sokoband isn’t worthy of such devotion. Playing together since 1990, this Charlottesville, Virginia-based trio has fine-tuned their ability to not just perform compositions, but to play within them as well. Their skill for improvisation allows them to color outside the lines of selections without straying too far from a song’s original theme.
Michael Sokolowski serves as the band’s pianist and main composer while Houston Ross holds down bass and guitar duties. Percussionist Nir Z rounds out the trio on the drums, making for a tight-knit harmonic core. A pair of tracks on the band’s self-titled album focuses solely on the threesome: “Lullaby for E” and “Half Sleep.” The former is a tranquil and touching instrumental while the latter finds them meandering over a locked groove. It is within “Half Sleep” that you can hear Sokolowski and Ross dance around the song’s main pattern through their performances while Nir Z provides the rhythmic foundation.
A collection of guest artists appear throughout the album, lending superb musicianship to their respective cuts and lifting Sokolowski’s compositions beyond the confines of piano/bass/drums arrangements. “Jiriki” makes this immediately apparent, as each musician in turn converses within a Latin rock framework. Sokolowski’s piano accents atop Nir Z’s highly expressive drumming is one of the highlights of this selection. “Jiriki” is the only song on this album to feature vocals and it certainly doesn’t hurt to have Dave Matthews singing the lyrics. His appearance is brief, but very effective, and by the end of the song his voice has become another instrument offering its own perspective on the conversation.
This is not the first time that Sokoband has crossed paths with the Dave Matthews Band. In fact, several members of the band appeared on their 1997 debut album, In November Sunlight. The entire contents of that album are revisited for Sokoband’s latest and saxophonist LeRoi Moore absolutely shines on “In November Sunlight.” His solo is reflective to the point where it tugs at your heart; emotion pours out of every note he plays. Moore switches from soprano sax to tenor on “And Yet Your Smile,” giving him a robust and romantic tone for this smooth jazz number. On the flip side of things, “Energy Changed” is the sonic about face of the album, a power quartet featuring blistering guitar work from Mike Colley. Co-written by Sokolowski and Colley, it is easily one of the strongest collective performances on the album, a shining example of jazz/rock fusion at its finest.
Sokoband explore a range of moods on this album and master them all through exceptional musicianship and the full-bodied compositions of Michael Sokolowski. Hopefully the Dave Matthews Band connection will garner more interest for this ensemble, but make no mistake…this trio clearly stands on its own merit. That which the Charlottesville live music scene has birthed will not stay secret for very long.
Review by Jason Randall Smith
