Gregory Howe's charmingly named Throttle Elevator Music erupted in 2012 as an edgy expansion of the mellower turf established by his Wide Hive Players. The Throttle Elevator approach has been referred to as jazz-punk (or punk-jazz) but a more accurate description of the colliding textures might be to point out elements in common with Ronald Shannon Jackson's Decoding Society, Trevor Watts' Moire Music Trio, and Ornette Coleman's Prime Time or even Last Exit. In the realm of Throttle Elevator Music, bassist/pianist Matt Montgomery and a drummer/guitarist named Lumpy interact bracingly with Kamasi Washington, a fine tenor saxophonist from Los Angeles whose working history includes sessions with Snoop Dogg, George Duke, Marcus Miller, Gerald Wilson, and (by way of Howe's production) Phil Ranelin. For a good time, try comparing Throttle Elevator Music with New Corporate Resistance, an album released in 2012 by the Neomythics, a rock band featuring Lumpy and Montgomery as well as Wide Hive house drummer Thomas McCree and guitarist Harvey Mandel. Additionally, on New Corporate Resistance, Gregory Howe steps out from behind the producer/mix-master curtain to perform as singer, guitarist, and synthesizer manipulator. Both albums are ideally suited for friendly reckless dancing or nocturnal freeway driving. ~ arwulf arwulf
