Liba Villevecchia Trio + Luis Vicente - Muracik (Clean Feed 2024)

By Gary Chapin

The addition of trumpeter Luis Vicente to the Liba Villevecchia Trio stirs the fundment more than you might think, if only because Villevecchia’s vision of the alto sax trio is so very tight that making space for a fourth instrument requires re-visioning.

The notes for this recording name check Ornette Coleman—as they should—but the most proximate progenitor of the trio (explicitly recognized by Villevecchia) is Thomas Chapin’s promethean trio from the mid-80s to early 90s. One of the great units of the time and undersung only because Chapin (a distant relation of this author) passed early from leukemia.

Vicente, a prolific trumpeter in the Portuguese jazz scene, is a powerful force in this partnership. Despite the title this isn’t a trio +1, it’s a quartet of creative voices; or, as the notes delightfully express it, an “exceptional Iberian hivemind, transforming magic triangle into squared circle.”

The disc begins as it intends to go on, with “Anticipation,” a groove fest with the bite of a crocodile. The charm of this trio is in the never-waning energy. Bassist, Alex Riveriego, and drummer, Vasco Trilla, never waver, never lag, always push push push and empower.

Vicente takes flight with the crew, adding to the volatility and theatricality. The track “Muracik” reminds you that adding a melodic voice doesn’t double timbral and harmonic options, but squares them. The improvisational opportunities flourish as the compositional opportunities are exploited.

“Expansion” brings into focus the autreelements of the group’s collective soul. With a genuinely unnerving introduction on (I think) cymbals, the piece transitions through a number of episodes, playful interludes surrounded by horn improv floating on a roiling bassdrumocean. Vicente’s composition, “Ornette Surrounds,” is a brilliant homage to the giant on whose shoulders so many stand. A simple but nagging and intriguing melody followed by melodic (harmelodic? I never quite know) improv from all players.

This is the third album by Villavecchia and crew, and the third home run. Here’s a review of 2022’s Zaidín.