by Luke Stewart

This Tuesday, D.C. avant music presenter and New Atlantis Collective mastermind Ed Ricart invades Twins Jazz yet again. Ricart’s operation always brings some of the finest in new, forward-thinking jazz and improvised music, and this performance should be no different. Pianist Jacob Anderskov is someone many around here might not know, but the Danish pianist and composer has performed with some of Europe’s best, and of late he’s been working in New York City with a number of the world’s greatest players.

Anderskov’s compositions are airy but intense, and his piano playing shows the influence of free jazz greats as well as new music figures like Philip Glass. On Tuesday, Anderskov will play two sets at Twins with a jaw-dropping quartet operating under the name Jacob Anderskov’s Agnostic Revelations. The group features some of the finest avant-garde improvisers in New York today: Chris Speed on tenor saxophone and clarinet, Michael Formanek on bass and Gerald Cleaver on drums. I asked Ricart about how he decided to bring Anderskov to town, and what listeners should look out for on Tuesday.

CapitalBop: Jacob Anderskov is someone many probably have not heard of. What made you bring him to D.C.?

Ed Ricart: Jacob sent me an email towards the middle of last year, with some basic info on this group. This lineup is killer, and I am happy to have the opportunity to help introduce people to talents and voices they might not necessarily be familiar with.

CB: The band is unbelievable. Tell us a little about each member.

ER: Jacob is a pianist from Denmark. I first heard his music in the context of the Copenhagen Art Ensemble, a 14-piece group that has worked with people like Jon Balke, Marc Ducret,  Joachim Kuhn, and released a nice album on Screwgun [Records] featuring Tim Berne. [Anderskov] has also played with legendary Brazilian percussionist Airto Moreira, saxophonist Frank Gratkowski and many, many more.

Drummer Gerald Cleaver generally works deep, deep in the pocket. Even in the groups of players who are typically associated with energy music, like Rob Brown or Charles Gayle, Gerald digs in and works rhythms inside and out. A point of comparison might be someone like Jack DeJohnette. Gerald has turned up on a number of outstanding recordings on the Portuguese label Clean Feed over the past few years. He led a brand new quintet through two sets of his compositions at a New Atlantis-presented gig at Twins late last year, and it was awesome. He has a number of discs as a leader on the Fresh Sound label, and I am hoping to pick up a few more of them this time around.

Michael Formanek is a bass legend, currently operating out of Baltimore. He has worked with an unbelievable number of heavy musicians: Peter Erskine,  Attilla Zoller, Dave Douglas, Herb Robertson, etc. He recently put out a great record on ECM; I’m a big fan of his work in Tim Berne’s groups, and a friend recently pointed me in the direction of his outstanding records for Enja in the ’80s.

I think a lot of people know Chris Speed through his diverse work with Jim Black, in groups like Pachora, a jazz group incorporating Balkan rhythms; AlasNoAxis, a jazz quartet with an indie rock feel to it; and Human Feel, alongside guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel. He has also played in John Hollenbeck’s Claudia Quintet – on Cuneiform Records – and Tim Berne’s Bloodcount. Chris also released two awesome trio discs with Lee Konitz on ESP-DISK.

CB: Why the name “Agnostic Revelations”?

ER: You know, it occurred to me to ask, but this is one we’ll have to ask Jacob about at the gig on Tuesday.

CB: What’s next in the New Atlantis series?

ER: Well, things have slowed down a bit since I have been on the road almost every month this year [performing with his duo Matta Gawa], but over the next few weeks and heading into the rest of the year, there is lots happening. On Monday, Mar. 21, Matta Gawa is sharing a bill with our friends Zevious – an avant-rock guitar trio on Cuneiform Records – at Galaxy Hut in Arlington. Then, I have Eugene Chadbourne playing a duo set with percussionist Tatsuya Nakatani at Pyramid Atlantic in Silver Spring on Apr. 1, and guitarists Nick Millevoi of Philly-based power trio Many Arms and Colin Fisher from Montreal will each play solo sets to support.

On Apr. 6, I have Harris Eisenstadt’s Canada Day at Twins Jazz. Harris is a great percussionist, and the band is awesome: Matt Bauder on reeds, Nate Wooley on trumpet, Chris Dingman on vibes and Garth Stevenson on bass. Should be a great night!

The rest of April will be a little bit slower, since I am heading to Chicago for the month…. As far as long-term projects go, May 20, I have Arrington de Dionyso playing a solo set, and the mighty Jooklo Duo, playing ecstatic free jazz from Italy, at Comet Ping Pong. May 23, I have keyboardist Evan Mazunik’s group ZAHA at Twins. Aug. 3rd, I have Ken Vandermark playing duo with Tim Daisy.

New Atlantis Records [the collective’s label] will be launching this summer, with a record from Jason Ajemian, a new Matta Gawa release, a Peter Brötzmann trio release and a solo disc from Nick Millevoi. The [New Atlantis] Festival is still in the works, and it is going to be outrageous! Also, the New Atlantis Octet – with me, Aaron Martin, Sam Lohman, Vattel Cherry, Jason Ajemian, Roy Campbell, Steve Swell and Andrew Barker – have a CD coming out called Why Cheat Yourself on the great Polish label, Not Two.

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Jacob Anderskov’s Agnostic Revelations performs two sets at Twins Jazz on Tuesday, at 8 and 10 p.m. The cover is $15, plus a $10 food and drink minimum.

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