Thus, the premise of Nik Bartsch's Ronin, minimalist zen-funk jazz from Switzerland. Bartsch is closely aligned musically and personally with the Ronin, the lonely warrior seeking his own path much like medieval Arthurian knights in search for the Holy Grail. Musically, Bartsch has also chosen a road less traveled.

In all honesty, of all of the performances that we are presenting within the 2008 Portland Jazz Festival, Nik Bartsch's Ronin is the performance that I'm anticipating the most! Bartsch's Ronin first evolved with Stoa, which to me was the most intriguing recording in 2006, and now they have release Holon, which is even better.

Stoa was a curious mix of acoustic and electronic sounds that had the aura of a rock concert, but with the minimalism of Steve Reich and dashes of Chopin, Satie, and James Brown. Where The Bad Plus mixes Wagner with Nirvana acoustically, Bartsch and Ronin pursued the same course electronically.

Holon is an even more mature work, and is almost exclusively acoustic. It's also obvious that the band has worked extensively, because even though this Ronin is following the same path, the band is tighter and the vision is clearer. The grooves are more global, and the funk still oozes through the notes, but the compositions are far more thought provoking. This is a major work by a compelling new artist, and it may be only January but someone is going to have to pull a major masterpiece out of left field to not pronounce Nik Bartsch's Ronin and Holon as both Artist and Album of the Year for 2008.

The distinguishing characteristics of the music are consistent: the modular constructions, the polymetric pulsations, the complex interlocking patterns, and repetitive motifs. As I alluded earlier, this is serious music where you can imagine Phillip Glass jamming with Sly & The Family Stone… or as one critic called it visceral minimalism.

Swiss zen funk? They are Swiss. It's as close as any contemporary music gets to aural zen parables, and the funk is just always present. I see fog machines and strobe lights in the middle of a Kurosawa film epic accompanied by a Nik Bartsch film score. This is brilliant new music that deserves your attention. Go out today and purchase Stoa, and then on February 5 go back out and get the new Holon. Finally, get your tickets for this ensemble's first US performance on Saturday, February 23. For once, I'll step out and personally recommend Nik Bartsch's Ronin to anyone who deeply cares about serious new music!

Buy tickets to this show!

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