How can one man be simultaneously so sleek and so greasy, so in and so out—and hip, besides? Maybe, in part, it’s his deep appreciation of the past, the ur-music, and his enthusiasm for its unpredictable and ongoing efflorescence. However he does it, trumpeter, composer, arranger, and band leader Steven Bernstein has made this contradictory fusion his trademark, and he’s just announced Community Music, a project that will release four new albums over the course of a year. Recorded in January 2020 with two of his working aggregations, the Millennial Territory Orchestra and The Hot 9, the albums document his arrangements and compositions, many never before heard, and you can check out (and purchase, if you like) the Community Music sampler, now available on Bandcamp, which offers a track from each album.

Steven Bernstein
Community Music sampler (Royal Potato Family)
A review
Recording four albums in four days with two nonets, the Millennial Territory Orchestra (MTO) and The Hot 9, and special guests requires prodigious organizational skills and professional musicians of the highest caliber who are exceptionally attuned to one another and to the material at hand. Judging from the extraordinary quality of the Community Music sampler, trumpeter Steven Bernstein has both, in spades.

According to the press release, it happened this way: “The band gathered at a Brooklyn studio in January 2020. Every day, Bernstein made sure to lay out a nice spread—a band, like an army, travels on its stomach—and the old friends would nosh and shoot the breeze for a while, then get down to work. They’d rehearse each tune for 45 minutes or so, then do two takes with no Protools fixes, no Autotune and no overdubs. ‘All the musicians are reacting to each other in real time, so you can’t use any of those tricks,’ Bernstein says. ‘So this is exactly what happened: it’s the music we played.’ ”

And what music it is: funky, soulful, and deeply rooted. As my friend, cantaor Vicente Griego says, “You’ve got to have roots to be able to give fruit, man,” and this fruit is rich and satisfying.

The sampler’s first track, “Show Me Your Myth,” comes from volume 1, Tinctures in Time (release date 9/3/2021), which Bernstein describes as “cannabis music” in the detailed notes on the Bandcamp page. A slow funk that builds on layers of sound, the tune exploits the MTO’s wide range of timbres, capturing and holding you in a trancelike state. (The album includes all original Bernstein compositions—a first for the MTO, known for covering any music that appealed to it.)

Earl King’s “Come On,” from volume 2, Good Time Music (release date 1/7/2022), opens with an MTO horn incantation and features special guest Catherine Russell on vocals, and Ms. Russell makes it juicy.

“Black Bottom Stomp,” a Jellyroll Morton composition, comes from volume 3, Manifesto of Henry-isms (release date 5/6/2022), named for the intricate idiosyncrasies of the late pianist Henry Butler, with whom Bernstein formed The Hot 9 and recorded and toured for several years. Fun, formal, and cheeky all at once, the track orchestrates some of Butler’s remarkable rhythmic and harmonic insights. Special guest John Medeski joins The Hot 9 on a bubbling organ.

The final track, Ellington’s “Flirtibird,” gives us a taste of volume 4, Popular Culture (release date 9/2/2022). This is Bernstein distilled to his essence, preserving the jungly Ellingtonian sound while stamping it with his own personality to create something fresh and unique.

All four tracks have an immediacy and looseness that can only come from a live performance, but they are incredibly tight at the same time—another Bernstein contradiction. That contradictory and delightful conjunction testifies to Bernstein’s exceptional arrangements and the consummate skill of his community of musicians. Since they make you feel so good, we must name them:

Millennial Territory Orchestra
Steven Bernstein (trumpet, slide trumpet, flugelhorn)
Curtis Fowlkes (trombone)
Charlie Burnham (violin)
Doug Wieselman (clarinet, tenor saxophone)
Peter Apfelbaum (tenor saxophone)
Eric Lawrence (baritone saxophone)
Matt Munisteri (guitar, banjo)
Ben Allison (bass)
Ben Perowsky (drums)

The Hot 9
Steven Bernstein (trumpet, slide trumpet, flugelhorn)
Curtis Fowlkes (trombone)
Charlie Burnham (violin)
Doug Wieselman (clarinet, tenor saxophone)
Peter Apfelbaum (tenor saxophone)
Eric Lawrence (baritone saxophone)
Matt Munisteri (guitar, banjo)
Brad Jones (bass)
Donald Edwards (drums)

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© 2021 Mel Minter