The Sounding Board by R J Lannan

REVIEW of AIRBORNE
The Sounding Board by R J Lannan
RJ Lannan is the reviewer for The Sounding Board.

Off the Deep End

Bassist extraordinaire Dean Peer has several albums to his credit, which is no mean feat for one that uses bass guitar as a lead instrument. Along with long-time veteran percussionist, Bret Mann, Peer's latest work called Airborne is a thrill a minute ride on a jazz-rock infused roller coaster. Peer is not just your average bass player. He is well known for the total utilization of his instrument that may include tapping, plucking, scratching and incredible harmonics that just seem to come out of nowhere. Airborne is a hodgepodge of styles and themes and all of it is good. The compositions are quite clever and you kind of wonder if Peer’s art has any boundaries.

1Speed is a very dramatic opening to a unique collection of songs. It is energetic to the point of bass guitar frenzy, but eventually settles down into some haunting 80's riffs reminiscent of Jefferson Airplane before they became confused. Mann keeps a steady cadence as the music grows into a driving two-man orchestra for blues and drum kit. It is a wild ride.

The title tune Airborne makes you wonder how far down the fret board Dean can play. Probably all the way into the pickup. There are some stratospheric harmonics all over the song. I guess that accounts for the name. The tune turns into a funky blues melody that is astonishing as it sounds like something between an electric harp guitar and a Theremin.

One of the more complex and satisfying tunes on Airborne is called N'est-ce Pas. Translated from the French it means many things, but basically it is saying "And why not?" There is a lot of patting on the strings and some grooving percussion. It is another tune where Dean becomes a one-instrument band with great accompaniment by Brett. It turned out to be a favorite.

Twin Peaks starts out with a deep bluesy rift and sounds like it has some electronic enhancements. It just probably more of Dean's superb tinkering. The melody is only identified half way through the set and there is some crazy fret-boarding going on. There are so many kinds of mountains...

On the southern coast of Oahu, Hawaii is the city of Waimanalo. It is adjacent to the beryl-colored ocean and the white sandy shore of Makapu'u Beach. It is a place of much beauty, community, and inspiration. Dean’s song Waimanalo Ohana (ohana is Hawaiian for family) puts out a funky rift that reminds me of the foamy surf, tall palm trees and the miles of sand. He also Anglicizes the feeling of "ohana" the most important building block of life in Hawaii, the family.

Peer has made his mark on the music industry by his unique style of bass harmonics and his fusion of mainstream genres. He has numerous awards on his wall, contributes often as a guest recording artist and has two other albums under his belt Ucross and the noteworthy Travelogue, which garnered an album of the year award from Jazz Times. I can only remember one other duo that had such rapport and synergy. Back in the seventies there was duo called Silver Apples. Electronic and drums. They only had two albums and their remarkable contribution to rock music went unheeded by most. Airborne is going to make people take notice. It is unavoidable.

Rating: Very Good

- reviewed by RJ Lannan on 3/3/2010