Joy on Fire - Another Adventure in Red (Procrastination)

New Jersey jazz-proggers Joy on Fire return with Another Adventure in Red, their most ambitious head trip yet

Hailing originally from Baltimore, the progressive jazz punks Joy on Fire like nothing more than an artsy night out. Whether that’s a jaunt to see King Crimson, watching Rob Mazurek perform in a clam bar, or hearing Laraaji hold forth on open guitar tunings, they’ve been to it all. No wonder such diverse influences emerge on their albums. Think of Morphine’s feisty growlings, Elephant9’s funky anarchy and the decisive melodies of Omer Avital. Joy on Fire, you see, never forget that people like grooving to an actual tune as opposed to untethered blarings. And in saxophonist Anna Meadors they have the perfect foil for this, set against John Paul Carillo’s guttural guitars and Chris Olsen’s sparky percussion.

Another Adventure in Red is the latest in a sterling run of records from the band, now based in New Jersey. Extra input this time from pedal steel, dulcimer and synths brings fresh impetus to an already expansive and ambitious sound. The title track finds all the JOF hallmarks in place with Carillo’s slashing guitar riff and Meadors’ piping hot sax lines, whilst Olsen ensures your internal organs take a pounding. Then true to JOF form this piece glides from gay abandon to deep introspection, as the tempo drops a fraction but the emphasis shifts considerably.

“After” lends a tingling synth backdrop to Meadors’ half-sung narration, with lyrics from Carolina bookstore owner and publisher Brian Lampkin. His verses feature again on “Night Sticks”, a slab of avant-pop bop with Natalie Havens on fervid lead vocals. The lengthiest tracks clock in at over ten minutes, including “Adventure in Green” where Carillo’s eerie Fripp-like swoopings build momentum and tension. This is music for that post-club comedown hour when the body is fatigued, but the mind remains wired in need of balm. The rhythmic finesse here stays hypnotic throughout. A hazy fuzz on “3rd Grade Fire” sees the sax and guitar lines endure a power struggle, yet both float out with clarity. It’s another number which muddies our sense of time and place with its tectonic bass drones.

Two albums that come to mind for reference are the cosmic energy of Hawkwind’s masterpiece Levitation, plus A Scarcity of Miracles where Robert Fripp gelled with sax legend Mel Collins and singer Jakko Jakszyk. Likewise, there’s a magic potency encoded in everything JOF undertakes here. Each composition has the detail you’d expect from a band who have a list of all their gigs since forming many years ago. It’s how they embellish their themes so subtly that impresses; like you’re standing naked one moment, to be luxuriously robed minutes later. As ever with JOF, your comfort zone is their target. Expect the unexpected.

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