As a player, Maxwell’s greatest strength is his tone, a keening sound similar to those of Jackie McLean and Kenny Garrett. It can be aggressively muscular or warmly expressive, depending on the context. His straight-ahead improvisations sometimes employ widely arpeggiated figures evocative of Eric Dolphy or Bennie Wallace. Although the rhythm section does a fine job of helping bring the tunes to life and inspiring the soloists, pianist Matt Nelson has to be singled out for his extraordinary skill as an improviser. His imaginative, unpredictable improvisations make listening to him a genuine pleasure.

For the past year Chicago Sessions has been doing a remarkable job of recording and exposing local talent. The twelfth and last volume of 2009, Maxwell’s House showcases the exceptional skills of altoist Shawn Maxwell. Maxwell names Kenny Garrett as his primary influence, but his sound is more reminiscent of Jackie McLean’s 1960s Blue Note recordings, although Maxwell’s tone is a bit deeper with a little less bite.

Eight of the ten compositions, all but one by the leader, that make up this CD are edgy, forward-looking, hard bop with a good measure of modal improvisations mixed in, not unlike MacLean’s work form the above mentioned era. The album opens and closes with a bang: both “Maxwell’s House” and “Dangerous Curve” are complex, yet catchy tunes with long, winding yet mellifluous and logical solos that reward repeated plays. The sole ballad (dedicated to his wife) and waltz (dedicated to his daughter) are looser more laid back affairs and sound a bit alike.

There are moments during which they sound a tad monotonous, but they are pleasant enough and blend well with the overall program. The sole track not composed by Maxwell, “If Only,” is in the same vein as the others. It is pianist Matt Nelson’s contribution, whose presence at this session is a real revelation. He takes uniquely constructed lengthy improvisations on all of the pieces and elevated the overall work to a higher artistic level.

His sound vaguely resembles a cross between the bluesy stylings of Sonny Clark and the freer sound of Walter Davis Jr. He switches easily between swingy blues to sparse sounds of modal jazz. Bassist Kevin Martinez and drummer Brandon Dickert provide adequate rhythmic support and take rare yet quite interesting solos. Although there is nothing revolutionary about this recording it is an extremely rewarding modern take on the edgy, modal hard bop of the 1960s with something extra for the 21st century.
—Hrayr Attarian

Alto saxist Shawn Maxwell grinds though ten originals on this highly caffeinated set with Matt Nelson/p, Kevin Martinez/b and Brandon Dickert/dr. He is latte light on the waltzing “Ava,” while being as thick as mocha on “Dangerous Curves” which includes some buzzing horn work. The tricky interplay between horn, piano and drums on the snappy “Shuffled” will wake you up liked an iced expresso, while Nelson’s work on “Sector 7-G” foams like a cappuccino. Maxwell’s House brims with delight-good till the last drop.

Just to make it clear from the outset: at 33, Shawn Maxwell is too young have given this album its title.
It’s not that he’s too young to drink coffee, of which Maxwell House is a tried and true American example (founded in 1892). But Maxwell House – the best-selling brand in mid-20th-century America, famous for its slogan “Good to the last drop” (which began running in 1917) – doesn’t exactly resonate with people in their 20s and 30s. In the Age of Starbucks, with a generation weaned on Peet’s and Caribou and Intelligentsia, lots of Shawn Maxwell’s contemporaries have never even heard of Maxwell House Coffee.
At this point, not so many people have heard of Shawn Maxwell, either – but a couple more albums like this could change that. Maxwell’s House, his Chicago Sessions debut, shows off a sprightly but strong-willed style, which grows from his puckered, slightly acerbic, and often kaleidoscopic tone. His alto timbre sits in a lineage exemplified by past giansts like Jackie McLean and Eric Dolphy, and by such latter-day players as Arthur Blythe and Steve Slagle. Maxwell gets to all of them through his emulation of Kenny Garrett (one of the most admired contemporary altoists), who folds many of those influences into his own music.
“People either love it or hate it,” Maxwell says of his tone.
Hoe continues, “I had about a ten-year infatuation with Garrett’s playing; I really love his sound. I’d hook up for a lesson here and there when he came to town, and he told me about Hank Crawford. The first time I heard Crawford, I hated his sound. But the more I listened, the more I thought it was pretty cool, and then I got into the style of those players in general.”
Maxwell bases much of his approach to improvisation around his sound: although he can run bebop lines along with the rest, his solos tend to involve fewer, longer-held notes, the better to emphasize the three-dimensional facets of his tone. His songs serve a similar purpose, living in a mid-tempo range that lets his sound breathe deeply. Whether composed or improvised, Maxwell’s melodies have a keening urgency that starts with that sound, which imparts a steamroller intensity belied by his easygoing manner.
Case in point: the song “Jathor.” The title comes from a nickname used by Maxwell’s stepson; the tune itself alternates between the relaxed opening theme and the more aggressive second strain; pianist Matt Nelson conjures up a whirlwind of activity in his solo, after which Maxwell pushes into a dizzying badlands that references free jazz and fusion. “It’s kind of how I see my stepson,” he explains, “in the way we change styles and weave through the melody. Like most kids, he’s great one minute and kind of insane the next.” With its similar range of emotion, Maxwell’s sound binds these contradictions together.
Like many artists, Maxwell looks for inspiration to the people and events in his life. He wrote “Ava” as a waltz for his infant daughter – “because when we dance around, we waltz, and when I count 1-2-3, it just cracks her up” – and “Five” for his wife, on the occasion of their fifth anniversary. “Five” is quite unusual: despite the success of songs in 5/4 rhythm (“Take Five” and “Mission Impossible,” for instance), there are almost no ballads in this meter. (But if you find a lovelier slow dance in Chicago this year, please let me know.) Here too, the song benefits from Maxwell’s multi-dimensional sound, which turns from pudding to rock salt and back again, as the tune requires.
Maxwell’s smarts show through on “Shuffled,” in which the alto, piano, and drums create a heady three-part polyphony; on “Sector 7-G” (named for Homer Simpson’s work locale), he injects some funk; and on “Dangerous Curve” he lets it all flow, in a solo that brims with the twists and turns suggested by the title. In almost every case, he keeps the blues handy – even when crafting a tough-as-nails statement on the modernist changes of “Different Colors Of Cool.”
Throughout the disc, Maxwell’s House displays a vibrant and steadily maturing quartet. The youthful Nelson emerges here (and on the standout Chicago Sessions disc by guitarist Aaron Koppel) as one of Chicago’s most promising jazzmen, and one of the freshest pianists on the national scene. Nelson deserves his own disc soon; like his twenty-something contemporary Gerald Clayton, he already know how to leave things out of his solos to highlight the ideas he chooses to retain – a lesson most musicians don’t learn until much later in life.
The Maxwell-Nelson collaboration goes back five years, to when Maxwell first assembled a working quartet. “I just happened to get Matt’s number, from a friend of a friend of a friend,” recalls Maxwell. “When he got on the band, it was one of the greatest things that ever happened to me. It really started to push things. With Matt, the band evolved into something much better, although for a couple years there, he just really kicked my ass as a player. I got him before anyone really knew him; when I call now, it’s ‘I’m already booked on this date or that date.’ The word is out,” laughs Maxwell.
Nelson has also served as the band’s unofficial contractor, bringing both Kevin Martinez (bass) and Brandon Dickert (drums) into the fold as openings arose. “They’re friends of Matt from high school, north of Chicago,” Maxwell explains. “And they were roommates for a while, too.” That helps explain the tightly bound interplay in the rhythm section; a dozen years of friendship en route to adulthood will do that for a trio.
Maxwell shares suburban midwestern roots with his cohorts. Born and bred in Joliet, IL, he graduated from Millikin University in Decatur in 1999, then moved 175 miles north to Chicago to perform and teach. A few years later, he headed 45 miles west to North Aurora to raise a family; there he started jobbing regularly, but also established a small circuit of clubs in which to play jazz. “We do a lot of stuff in the ’burbs,” he explains. “The pay is sometimes better, and it’s easier to get into the venues; and maybe it’s the lack of other live music out here, but they really seem to love us.” (Maxwell’s self-deference aside, this might have less to do with the quantity of the competition than it does with the quality of this music.)
As for the title Maxwell’s House, “Ever since I started teaching, people would always misspell both my first and last names. I’ve seen like twelve different spellings of ‘Shawn,’ if you can believe it; and even with ‘Maxwell,’ people would leave out the ‘w.’ So I started telling them ‘Maxwell, just like the coffee’; and then we started joking about being at ‘Maxwell’s house,’ and so on.
“It’s funny though,” he adds; “I don’t even drink coffee.”
 

Chicago-based multi-reedist Shawn Maxwell’s third disc as a leader, Maxwell’s House, follows in the footsteps of his Originals (Self Published, 2006) and Originals II (Self Published, 2008). All three sets possess a solid mainstream quartet sound, with the piano/bass/drums rhythm team fronted by the leader’s tangy-toned alto saxophone.

The disc opens with the highly-caffeinated title tune. Maxwell spits sharp notes into the stop-and-go rhythm that gives way to fluid and intensely-pretty piano turn by Matt Nelson. The leader then gets a bit "out there" with some jagged lines.

"Shuffled" exudes a dark, prowling mood in its intro. Then things brighten up with some shining quartet interplay and percussive piano. "Five" is a rare ballad in 5/4, and is as lovely as tunes of slow tempo come. "If Only," co-written by Nelson and Matt Nischan, is the only non-Maxwell tune on any of Maxwell’s three discs to date, fitting nicely into an up-tempo groove, while "Ava" swings in a gentle waltz time.

Throughout, the saxophonist’s tart, biting tone is reminiscent of Jackie McLean. If Maxwell decides, at some point, to branch his recording efforts into the non-original realm, a cover of McLean’s "Little Melonae" would be a perfect vehicle.

Maxwell takes his inspiration where he finds it, visiting "Sector 7-G," Homer Simpson’s work locale from the popular television series, The Simpsons. A hint of funk bubbles beneath the spice of Maxwell’s horn on yet another engaging original that features, again, a lively piano solo. "Different Colors of Cool" conjures Art Pepper’s sound and intensity, and the set’s closer, "Dangerous Curve" bores ahead with a relentless momentum, a hard-driving wrap-up to another very engaging workout by Shawn Maxwell.

Track listing: Maxwell’s House; Shuffled; Five; Jathor; Ava; If Only; Welcome; Sector 7-G; Different Colors of Cool; Dangerous Curve.

Personnel: Shawn Maxwell: alto saxophone; Matt Nelson: piano; Kevin Martinez: bass; Brandon Dickert: drums.
 

AGNIESZKA IWANSKA All That I Am Independent

In the tradition of vocalists such as Basia and Astrud Gilberto, a fresh new voice on the scene debuts with a truly delightful collection of original songs ranging from jazz to pop to Brazilian to gentle retro funk. Chicago-based Polish American songstress Agnieszka Iwanska’s debut release, ALL THAT I AM, is a brilliant collaboration between Ms. Iwanska and well-known composer/producer/keyboardist Paul Scherer, and just gets better and better with each listen. There are nine different songs on the CD, plus Polish language versions of three of them. Highlights to my ear include the title track, plus “Thinking About You,” featuring some stunning flute work from Shawn Maxwell, and the jazzy “Love Around,” featuring the talented Scott Angst on sax. Overall, Agnieszka Iwanska’s ALL THAT I AM is an impressive musical journey filled with meaningful lyrics, captivating melodies, and an over-riding element of charm that you’ll find impossible to resist! ~SCOTT O’BRIEN
 

Matthew Warnok at All About Jazz

One of the young jazz artists making their mark on the Chicago scene, alto saxophonist
Shawn Maxwell continues on vigorously despite a music industry that is crumbling before
our eyes and is understandably indifferent to the plight of the lone artist attempting to write
and record new music focused as they are on their own survival. Thankfully, Nick Eipers
and Chicago Sessions took the opportunity to record Maxwell on his third and strongest
outing yet, Maxwell’s House. The rhythm section of double-bassist Kevin Martinez and
drummer Brandon Dickert provide a solid foundation for Maxwell and pianist Matt Nelson
to solo over Maxwell’s gnarly and highly-creative changes. Maxwell growth as a player is
breathtaking - his Kenny Garrett-inspired tone and long lines a fresh change from the usual
alto player’s approach to burn at all times and leave no space. Maxwell shreds and well
when it is appropriate. Nelson, of course, is becoming one of Chicago’s most in-demand
pianists and it is clear why here again as he proves the perfect foil for Maxwell. The compositions
are grounded in the traditional, yet spiked with plenty of surprising shifts and
interesting elements and evidence of Maxwell’s confidence and maturity. For example, the
opening title-track wouldn’t seem out of place in an old Hollywood musical, but for the
modern harmonization and sudden changes, while "Shuffled" bookends a straight-ahead
center with some deliciously twisted lines. The truly beautiful ballad "Five" is indeed in 5/4
time. You will have trouble sitting still as "Jathor" suddenly changes from a mellow shuffle
into an intense rocking section driven by Dickert’s aggressive beat and highlighted by hot
solos by Nelson and Maxwell. A lovely waltz for daughter "Ava," a sprightly Matt
Nelson/Matt Nischan original "If Only," the leisurely-paced "Welcome," the funky waltz of
"Sector 7-G," the high-stepping "Different Colors of Cool" and a new version of his mindbending
"Dangerous Curve" follow, and showcase the wide range of Maxwell’s vision. By
following his own way, Maxwell has created another album of importance based on his
originality and sense of purpose. As such, it is impossible to resist the urge to claim that
Maxwell’s House is good to the last note.

Review by Brad Walesth
www.jazzchicago.net
 

The Shawn Maxwell Quartet recently hosted a CD release party at Andy’s for their new CD, "Maxwell’s House."  The guys at jazzchicago.net were on hand.  Check out their coverage by click on the link below.

http://www.jazzchicago.net/reviews/2009/SMAndys.html

Check out Shawn Maxwell on The Mike Jeffers Chicago Jazz Radio Show.  You can hear the podcast at the link below:

http://chicagojazzradio.podbean.com/

This show was aired on December 1st, 2009, part 1.