Official showcase at
Eurosonic (2019) - MIL Festival (2019) - Jazzahead (2021)
Since 'Interstellar Space', John Coltrane’s posthumously released duo album with Rashied Ali, the combination of sax and drums has received an aura of sublime spiritual ambition. It is where tireless truth seekers come together to aim for something transcendental. Something too big for words. Of course, a lot has happened in the meantime.
The available options – philosophically, stylistically, temperamentally – are endless. Musicians are aware of those historical turning points, yet they also try to add their own twists and interpretations. Some of them succeed.
One of reed player Mattias De Craene’s many projects – MDC III – is a project involving drums and saxophone. A striking difference: De Craene invited two drummers (Simon Segers, Lennert Jacobs), that have been active in the worlds of jazz, pop, free improvisation and experimental music. They are the ideal foil for De Craene’s vision, which seems to exclude no opposites. While the use of a recorder, electronics and percussion steers the music beyond the classic acoustic limitations, the result becomes strikingly rich with contrasts. What is abstract and introspective the first moment can switch – gradually or abruptly – to moments of fierce ecstasy the next.
The music feels free - free from limitations, free to choose its own logic - , but also invites. Shifting moods and textures are combined with intricate rhythmical patterns, as the drummers lock together in dense, complex and/or ritualistic grooves. A minimal pulse, accompanied by murmuring hisses of brushes and a serenading sax is contrasted with moments of exuberance. The result is many things at once, but despite these wildly varying colors, sounds, textures, rhythms and moods, they are all linked, part of a generous, iridescent whole.
Mystical, wild and trance-induced critical acclaimed albums 'Dreamhatcher' (W.E.R.F Records, 2018) and 'Drawn In Dusk' (W.E.R.F. Records, 2022) deliver a delicious load of modular drums, wildly processed saxophone sounds and pulsating grooves.
Mattias De Craene's recent experience with long COVID, combined with the intense demands of life as an artist, made clear that a dramatic change was necessary. To reduce stimuli to a minimum, Mattias relocated to the countryside, where he’s able to calmly ground in a stress-free environment. This new setting has provoked a different approach to the band's future of music-making. MDC III will continue to experiment with their setup and its limitations, drawing inspiration from electro-acoustic ambient music, including the works of Midori Takada, psalms, and Japanese environmental music, while staying true to the spirit of 'free music,' the essence from which MDC III was originally born.
13/09 - European Jazz Conference - Club Telex - Gent
Management: hi@labestia.be +32 485 60 12 06
Booking: daan@daan.agency +32 496 81 87 30
