The award-winning Rayner-led ARQ completed the evening, much of the material coming from their recently released and well-received album Short Stories. The leader introduced the compositions and gave poignant background information about each. Highlights were pianist Steve Lodder’s Seeing Around Corners, with Cartwright’s raunchy blues-tinged guitar; the atmospheric soprano of Diane McLoughlin on the Scottish inspired Braw Boy; Buster Birch’s commanding drums on Buster Breaks A Beat; and the guitar and sax creating the sound of a didgeridoo on Croajingolong Bushwalk, Rayner’s highly percussive composition about the outback, with her resonant bass propelling the group. A highly enjoyable night.
Jazz Journal ARQ Live at LJF – Kings Place Nov 2019
Alison Rayner Quintet