TIM the Band — Thank You Roland

Oddly TIM the Band features no one called Tim(or Roland, for that matter!), but instead it features two San Franciscan gentleman who offer up some nice sometimes spaced-out & mellow, to rapidly honked and often electronic loop improvised sax playing.

TIM The Band features Daniel Pearson on Electric Tenor saxophone and effects, and Christopher Olsen on atmospheric Sax. This is the bands second album after 2009’s “Heal Thy Life” which feature a third member Steve Saviano on drums, but album this a remains completely percussion less. On offer here are three tracks in all, with each lasting between eleven to twenty one minutes a piece.  Each track follows a similar path really, in that each mixes more harmonic, drifting, mellow or atmospheric sax repetition. With more honking, violent or off-angle improv- which either  goes over top of mellow/harmoinc stuff  or suddenly takes over the track altogether. All the tracks have a nice Ying/Yang feeling about them; so you never get too comfy and laid back, yet equally you don’t get too over run by loads of rapid and seared honking either. The pair play off each other very well  with Olsen mainly creating the dramatic, harmonic and sometimes uneasy backdrop for Pearson sometimes seared, other times soaring, but always creative sax work and subtle electronics

“Thank You Roland” appears on Goat Eater Arts which is usually the home of avant garde soundscaper extraordinaire  Hoor-paar-Kraat aka Anthony Mangicapra who runs the label, and  also designs all the albums distinctive arty packaging. So it’s nice to see this great label offering up some new blood, and let’s hope there’s more to come- as this is thoroughly enjoyable mix of mellow and awkward.