Search - Eberhard Weber :: Endless Days

Exotic chords put you in another space.

Bruce Bartlett | Elkhart, IN United States | 06/14/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I first heard Weber's "Endless Days" when sitting outdoors with headphones after twilight, watching a tree slowly heaving in the wind before a thunderstorm. This scene fit the music's mood perfectly. The album put me in a "beach on a grey day" meditative mood.In several songs are synthesizer-produced chords that are unpredictable and challenging, yet beautiful. The dense, sophisticated chords take you to higher realms, reminiscent of Terje Rypdal's "Waves" (on ECM) or Pat Metheny Group's pop symphonies. Weber's highly original compositions and arrangements are intriguing. He also did "The Last Stage of a Great Journey" on an earlier album, and it's interesting to hear the differences.I've been a fan of Eberhard Weber's music since hearing "T on a White Horse" while gazing at a Christmas tree. Another lovely, peaceful composition is Weber's "Maurizius" from the album "Later That Evening."The music is a beautiful, intelligent fusion of classical, New Age and jazz styles. I love it and I give it five stars."

Meditative and wise, yes, but a little tedious

Stephen Silberman | SF, CA USA | 05/23/2001

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This is the first album in seven years from Eberhard Weber, the archetypal ECM bassist with an astonishingly original sound and an exquisite compositional sensibility. The highlights of his career often marked high points for ECM's sensibility: There have been few celebrations of lush keyboard textures and poignant minimalist melodies as profound as Weber's masterpiece, "Yellow Fields"; his outings with vibist Gary Burton ("Ring" and "Passengers") are among the most interesting, vital recordings in Burton's long career; and even his previous release, a multitracked session for solo bass called "Pendulum," maintained interest with its engaging melodies and varied sonic palette.He's got a dream band here -- Oregon's always-lively Paul McCandless, the brilliant Rainer Bruninghaus, a 30-year collaborator, and the underrated Michael DiPasqua on percussion. Alas, however, this session feels claustrophic somehow, the melodies more simply repetitive than reflective. In the past, Weber and Bruninghaus were able to build up simple patterns into washes of sound that approached a kind of ecstasy: think of "Sand-Glass" on "Yellow Fields," or even the exquisitely static "T. on a White Horse" from the under-appreciated "The Following Morning." Or think of Bill Frisell's astoundingly fluid lead, unfolding for several minutes, on "Death in the Carwash" from "Later That Evening," intensifying to a peak that is one of the most joyous and revelatory moments in the entire ECM catalog.There's not enough ecstasy here. In place of it is a wise, mature, somber reflectivity in washed-out shades of gray. Somber musing can be worthy territory in the hands of a genius like Weber, but this recording feels a little precious, as if the cyclical motifs of the compositions need to be aired out a bit. It's too prim and polite, and "Endless Days" ends up seeming a little -- well, endless."

Wise and depthful yes, tedious, hardly

Brian Whistler | Forestville, CA United States | 06/04/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Eberhard Weber is a master colorist. For more than 30 years he has been forging his own brand of impressionistic European jazz, honing an honest expression of a truly original artistic voice. This album is a worthy contribution to a life's work by one of the true innovators of the bass and a great composer as well.



No, it's not a high energy collection, but then neither was Fluid Rustle or The Following Morning, both classics. Definitely more introspective than Later That Evening, which it will no doubt be compared to because of the presence of Paul McCandless, this is an entirely different work, brooding and dark and subtly orchestrated. But this is most definitely not wimpy music.



Special mention should be made of Weber's revisting of "Last Stages of a Long Journey". Originally written for his quartet, Colors and first presented on the "Little Movements" cd, here it is richly orchestrated and expanded. McCandless handles the multi reed chores and the results are fascinating. This piece is a tone poem, so richly evocative and visual, it could've been part of a movie soundtrack. The piece is served well here, with it's added counterpoint and textures. McCandless's bass clarinet is well suited to the chugging, loping bass line. McCandless is the perfect player for the european style changes in the solo section, and plays exceptionally well here.



This CD is graced with the presence of Rainer Brunninghaus, one of the most underrated jazz pianists around. The regular keyboard man in Jan Garbarek's group, Brunninghaus has had a 30 year association with Weber. Needless to say, these gentleman know how to play together.



I don't know anything about Weber's personal life, but it appears to me that in his maturing process he has dealt with the inevitable losses that human beings encounter and is expressing some of the sadness and profound sense of mystery that pervades the work of a great artist in his maturity. Weber demonstrates a deepening what has been the focus of his musical life, that of refining his expression of the ineffable through the use of space and subtle color, to say more with less, a true jazz minimalist and much more. He imbues his deceptively simple structures with something rarely found in classical minimalism, emotional depth. It is interesting to look at the photo of Mr Weber in the typically spare ECM liner notes. There is new element present in his eyes. Call it wisdom, maturity, soulfulness, whatever you call it it is this human quality that pervades Mr Weber's work and is what this CD is all about."