Album Review: Tides from Philip Weberndoerfer

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Album:  Tides
Artist:  Philip Weberndoerfer
Label:  Shifting Paradigm Records
Website:  https://www.weberndoerfer.com

Composer-guitarist Philip Weberndoerfer delivers Tides, an exploration of tones, textures, and movement.  Supported by bassist Richard Mikel, drummer Peter Traunmueller, and saxophonist Dayna Stephens, Weberndoerfer experiments with sonic structures, lyrical phrasing, and harmonic forms, intimating private thoughts and reflections.

Stephens's saxophone weaves billowy waves along "Low Gravity" that delight the aural senses and elevate the listening experience, as Weberndoerfer's riffing on the guitar enhances the feel good vibrations with the combination of a bluesy tint and an exotic, gypsy-like shimmer in his musings.  The recording shifts to a slow-burning glint through "Peace of Constance," accentuated by the soft rustle of Stephens's saxophone, as the rhythmic beats of Mikel's bass and Traunmueller's drums produce gentle, rollicking swells.  It's a track the listener can sink into and forget one's surroundings.

Tracks like "My Ideal" and "Suspense and Certainty" resonate soul as the trio of Weberndoerfer, Mikel, and Traunmueller shape sonic patterns spurred by an inner voice.  They customize an intimate conversation among the three that abandons structure and focuses on their private thoughts.  Overtones of bluesy Ragtime jazz emanate from the textured chords of Weberndoerfer's guitar and the pulsating beats of Mikel's bass and Traunmueller's drums then turn retrospective and solemn along "One Of These Days."

A German-Bavarian native, Philip Weberndoerfer's collaboration offers an imaginative album that embraces an open dialogue among the musicians.  Their friendly approach towards interplay produces seamless ebbs and flows, allowing room for each of their voices to be heard, eliciting the listener's attention.  Weberndoerfer is a proven visionary with Tides.

Musicians:
Philip Weberndoerfer - guitar
Richard Mikel - bass
Peter Traunmueller - drums
Dayna Stephens - saxophones

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