Recorded last May at Constellation in Chicago, HausLive 4 chronicles a set by the Bill Orcutt Guitar Quartet where the playing of these guitarists achieves a kind of synergy as well as an attractive dissonance. "A Different View" is propulsive and energetic, a loop of energy, while the central hook of the brief "In the Rain" lodges itself firmly in the brain. The players here seem to be working feverishly to dislodge it from their heads, even as the guitar chords and notes churn around and around the riff. Elsewhere, "Out of the Corner of My Eye" features leads which are vaguely Middle Eastern-inspired in an almost Jimmy Page kind of way, while the tune itself goes from a circular melody to free-form improvising. It's stunning.
The album's center-piece is "On the Horizon", a nearly quarter-hour-long epic. This one is where the four players find space to explore and cut loose, then combine forces to burn through chords and riffs. HausLive 4 is highly recommended overall, but if you were going to test drive one track before buying, I'd urge you that you make it this one. There's Fripp-ish stuff going on here, Zep-style rock power, and a Frisell-like playfulness in the decisions of each guitar player here. Choices are made and pursued, and the four musicians find ways to deliver surprises in the peaks and valleys of the track.
HausLive 4 by Bill Orcutt Guitar Quartet is out on April 29 from Hausu Mountain.
[Photo: Ricardo E. Adame]