Drummer Scott Amendola has a long history of collaborations with amazing guitarists, including Nels Cline, Charlie Hunter, and more. PDXMMXVIII, a live album recorded at the PDX Jazz Festival in (obviously) 2018, puts Amendola and bassist Paul Bryan onstage with their Berklee schoolmate Jeff Parker, with whom Amendola previously recorded on his 2010 album Lift.
Never a firebreather, Parker is a very different player from Cline or Hunter, and Amendola takes advantage of that. Parker tends towards subtle shifts and harmonic journeys, and his boss contributes tunes that allow the axeperson to wander around the melody to his heart’s content. Just listen to “Swagger of the Tail Wagger,” as Parker plays licks that imply the tune as much as hit it, with Amendola keeping the rhythm at an agitated swing and Bryan contributing the kind of bass solo he eschews in his work with Aimee Mann. Or spin “Lift” (from the aforementioned studio album), with Amendola bubbling around the beat, Bryan adding subtle accents, and Parker layering gorgeous chordwork over the top. With the drummer leading the way, “Momentum and Backlash” showcases this trio at its most exploratory, following the pulse even though they can’t hear it, as if everyone is wired directly into the leader’s heartbeat. Probably the most overtly jazzy song here, “Tudo de Bom” captures a groove and lets all three players ride it over a horizon that glows like Grant Green’s grin.
Like a good composer, Amendola writes tunes that give his musicians plenty of open space. But he’s an even better bandleader, setting up his players for success and encouraging them to reach deep inside themselves to find it. PDXMMXVIII makes good on that promise.
