Improvising Musicians and the Titanium Trio

I braved yesterday evening's wintry blast for a new gig experience courtesy of Improvising Musicians of Ottawa/Outawais (IMOO) and Umi Cafe. A quick note on Umi Cafe - my first visit impressions are of a well-liked local cozy cafe: lots of fair trade options (plus tasty cookies) and open mic nights. My initial impression of IMOO (via their website and Facebook page) was of an open-mic style with extras but it seems that their regular events are much more 'small gigs with a twist'.

IMOO's Facebook promo enticed me to attend Concert #42. A trumpet-led trio? Sounds fun. Titanium Trio, comprising Lina Allemano, Rob Clutton and Nick Fraser (trumpet/music writer, electric bass and drums respectively) played 2 very interesting half-hour sets in front of 20-odd people, plus a few random customers who came in for coffee and were intrigued enough to stay. Whilst the style of music played by Titanium Trio isn't my usual bent, it was fun listening, from the melodic line/rhythm interplay of the first song, #2, to the third track, '#7 Bagpipe', which to my ears had fragments reminiscent of an AABA song format whilst also being completely different! In between songs, Allemano explained that most of the pieces until recently didn't have titles, just numbers; although some retained their number as an official title.

The second 'set' started with an energetic track (funky bass line) labelled 'Titanium'; the following 2 pieces featured Allemano changing her sound by using firstly (I believe) a 'tin' straight mute, followed by an empty pop can.

As a live music series, IMOO has a lot of promise; it's certainly worth checking their website and Facebook for future listings. Forthcoming events include a concert by the IMOO Orchestra (IMOOO!) at Ottawa Jazz Festival's Winter Edition - they play on 4th February, 3pm at Club Saw.

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