Life is crazy busy sometimes and then you take a moment to just be in the moment. A recent Chapel show with Christoper Icasiano, Beth Fleenor, and Ahamefule J. Oluo was the exact reset I needed. Seattle is experiencing an unusual early summer. All of us locals know that summer doesn’t start until after July 4th, and then before we are in our groove the Seattle rain returns. On this Thursday night, all the windows of The Chapel were open allowing the soundscapes of the garden below to accompany the musicians’ solo sets.
Christoper Icasiano
Icasiano opened the set on drums. The rhythms at times reminded me of the drum only tracks from a Sakai Ishingage Odori Preservation Society record I’ve heard and at other times Steve Reich’s “Drumming” compositions. Rarely did Icasiano open his eyes and look directly at the audience. This somewhat fascinated me because I wondered if the composition was completely freeform - a connection to the vibe of the room and the sounds from outside.
Beth Fleenor
Beth Fleeonor played next. Anyone who has seen her solo set knows that she builds the songs layer by layer. The album “Push Thru” remains in rotation on my playlist. There’s just some kind of great release for me listening to that record on a crappy day, and even a happy day. For this performance, however, those familiar tracks had a slow build and took on the sound of long form remixes. The entire time, I kept waiting for her to sing, only to question myself - did I get the track right? I’m pretty sure my face broke into a smile that lasted the entire set - because my jaw hurt by the end! Plus, I really just wanted to dance - even as a solo act Fleenor has an unrelenting energy. The crazy thing is she and Alex had just stepped off a plane from Argentina twenty-four hours before the show. By the way Oxygenation Vol.2-1 and Vol. 2-2 are wonderful works, I’m hoping to write my thoughts about that later.
Ahamefule J. Oluo
The evening ended with Oluo on trumpet, snare drum, noisemakers, and effect pedals. He quietly stepped to the stage and began to slowly build up soundscapes. At times similar to Icasiano, his music intermixed with the cacophony outside. He too sometimes played with closed eyes, clearly internalizing the musical notes from his head to the audience. One thing I love about seeing concerts these days is when I’m completely unfamiliar with an artist's work. It requires finding a balance between engaging with the music and figuring out when to click the shutter. Everything has a pattern. It is one of many things the film Baraka has taught me. It was the type of set in which I challenged myself to stop engaging with the camera and instead with the music. Similar to Icasiano I wanted to know Oluo’s creative process - I wanted to capture his contemplation.
