Issue 2017-065

Pete Oxley & Nicolas Meier - The Colours of Time

Nicolas Meir is a Swiss guitarist who has recently worked and toured with Jeff Beck and is also a member of the instrumental metal band seven 7.

Over the years, Meier has featured on many albums and has an extensive discography, both as a solo artist and as a member of the Nicholas Meier trio. He has often collaborated with renowned jazz guitarist Peter Oxley, and the duo have released two albums to date. In October, Meier is due to tour the UK as part of the Budjana Meier group.

The Colours of Time (2017) is collaboration between Meier and Oxley. It is a thoughtful and engaging album that contains many facets that listeners who appreciate instrumental guitar-led music might enjoy.

The album contains two discs. The first disc features Oxley and Meier and is aptly titled duo. A wide range of styles is represented, and the pair is able to successfully incorporate jazz and world influences into a number of compositions. The recording is bright and each instrument has great clarity. The result is an album where every nuance and sound is clearly defined. It is interesting to listen to the manner in which both players interact with each other, as they have a tangible empathy that makes the recording a pleasure to listen to.

A Piece for Peace is probably my favourite track. It has a genuinely beautiful melody and a laid back vibe that is just perfect for late night star-gazing with the person you love. Princes' Islands is another strong piece. It successfully melds a number of different influences, and its middle-eastern flavour gives it an appealing sound.

Disc 1 is technically adept, but both players do not lose sight of the fact that music needs to capture the heart as well as the mind. As a consequence, the tunes are not complex for the sake of it and many offer light, accessible melodies where feel and emotion are as equally important as speed and nimble-fingered dexterity

Overall, disc 1 is intriguing and tracks such as Sahara combine intimacy, intricacy and subtlety with an adventurous mix that is never repetitive and often has the ability to surprise.

The second disc is entitled "Quartet" and features Oxley and Meier in concert, with the addition of a bassist, drummer and keyboard player. The extended line-up ensures that the music on this disc has greater impact, and as a consequence is probably more likely to appeal to a wider audience than the disc 1.

There are fine versions of a number of tracks that appeared on Meier's Infinity solo album. It is interesting to compare versions of tracks such as Tales and Riversides, with how the tunes were recorded in the studio.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Colours of Time and especially disc 2, but overall there is probably little within the release that is likely to find an audience amongst those who enjoy prog, as defined by bands such as Pink Floyd, Genesis, and Yes.

Infinity on the other hand, has a much wider selection of styles, and I think it contains more ingredients that are likely to appeal to the majority of DPRP readers than the material on The Colours of Time.

Although Infinity is a solo album, there is a real group-feel to many of the compositions. As expected, the album showcases Meier's enviable ability as a guitarist, but equally important are the roles that bass player Jimmy Haslip and drummer Vinnie Colaiuta play in bringing the music to life. Haslip's bountiful contribution is particularly compelling and there are many opportunities throughout the course of the album for him to take centre stage. These are guaranteed to satisfy anybody who appreciates the full-bodied sound of the bass, played with considerable feeling and aplomb.

The album is beautifully produced and the sound quality of the recording glistens with clarity. Meier's clean tone is perfectly captured. He plays with lucid precision, and his instrument has a remarkable presence. The whole album is awash with tantalising melodies, which tease and twist, but never become dominated by brash aggression or dark discordance.

The album begins with the impressive Eye of Horus. It has a Middle-Eastern vibe and has a plethora of unexpected moments, including a bass solo that steams and sweats in a wholesome serving of bottom-end energy. It is a fine opener and is a portent for the excellent progressive jazz fusion that much of the album possesses.

Everything about Eye of Horus works; the Al Di Meola guitar style, and the howling, yelping, deep-throated electric violin that accompanies it, is perfect in every respect. The more melodic sections are very reminiscent in style and atmosphere to what Dewa Budjana so flawlessly achieved in his Zentuary release.

The most impressive tune is Riversides, which contains a great mixture of ethnic styles. Stylistically it would also have happily found a place in Dewa Budjana's Zentuary. The use of the violin gives it a slight Mahavishnu feel, but the real star of the piece is the slurred and picked distortion of Meier's guitar. The head of the tune is magical, and the feeling exuded by the bendy, bulging notes as they subside to nothing, is nothing short of magnificent.

One of the most appealing aspects of Infinity is the inclusion of a number of languid pieces that perfectly offset the more up-tempo numbers. These offer a change of pace and provide lots of opportunity for measured reflection. There are many occasions when the album practices the art of subtle seduction, by the selection of spacious notes, rather than a gruff, quick-fired assault upon the senses in the matter of a few seconds. During Infinity, touch, feel and quality are much more important than speed and quantity.

Still Beautiful tickles and caresses the listener with just the right mixture of mischievous guile and satin-sheeted seduction. The piece is easily accessible and is as tunefully melodious as anything Pat Metheny might have penned.

Yemin is an acoustic piece with some Middle-Eastern/Turkish flourishes that contains lots of unexpected twists. The violin parts work very well and furnish the piece with an air of mystery. Listeners who enjoy the multi-faceted violin work of artists such as Shankar will find much to ruminate upon during the atmospheric interludes provided by Sally Jo's expressive bow-work.

There were times when I felt that the album was a little too polite for its own good and the inclusion of some brash aggression and discordance would have added to the album's colourful palette of sounds. There were some points during the album, and particularly during the exuberantly paced and ever changing Legend, where I would have preferred Meier's chosen sound to be dirtier and more direct. This might have made the piece's enjoyable jousting between the violin and guitar even more effective.

Overall, I have become quite enthralled by Infinity. The interplay between the players is magnificent and the level of musicianship on display is exemplary at all times. This creates an album that is a delight to listen to and one that is genuinely exciting at times. Infinity will definitely appeal to anybody who enjoys instrumental progressive jazz fusion.

I am looking forward to hearing some of the tunes featured in Infinity played in a live setting during October. It will be interesting to see how the combination of Dewa Budjana and Nicholas Meier are able to interpret and evolve already dazzling tunes, such as Riversides and Kismet, into something that sparkles even more brightly.