Originally from Eden Valley in South Australia, a tiny town near the Barossa ranges, Quentin Angus now lives in New York City, where he is an acclaimed jazz guitarist and an Associate Professor of Music at the City University of New York.
He returns to Australia later this month to launch his new album, 'The State Of Things', with a run of live shows accompanied by a band of stellar Australian jazz musicians.'The State Of Things' is precisely that, music that reflects where Angus' head is at. He's a new dad, wholeheartedly enjoys teaching, and has realised that above all else, it is the art of composition that he loves.
This album is more accessible than his earlier works, and it sings out that the future – whatever challenges there may be to overcome – can be good.
'The State Of Things' is exciting, sometimes urgent, sometimes contemplative, but all secured on a bedrock of optimism. The album was recorded in New York, with Michael Mayo (voice, lyrics), Can Olgun (piano), Desmond White (bass), and Nate Smith (drums).
Angus says this is his first album with lyrics and vocals as the prominent voice, and the two people that made the most significant impact on the album were Mayo and Smith. "Every song had a specific theme or idea that I wanted to get across," Angus says.
"I got together with Michael Mayo, played through the songs and explained the story and the concept behind each song, and what I wanted to express.
"He showed me little recordings, and he was so spot on – there was nothing to change. It was perfect, and it shows why he's so highly in demand as a lyricist and a vocalist."
Angus says he chose his drummer for a specific reason. "Nate is famous for having amazing grooves, rather than the jazz chops, even though he can do that too.
"This album is not traditional jazz – I mean, there's hardly any swing – it's more R&B and pop-inspired in terms of the grooves behind it."
On this Australia tour, Angus will be playing with Australian musicians Jo Lawry (voice), Steve Barry (piano), Sam Anning (bass), and Ben VanderWal (drums).
"These Australian musicians each have something super unique to contribute, individually," Quentin says. "I would say, if you're a vocalist, come to see Jo. If you're a drummer, then come to see Ben.
"These musicians are some of the best on their respective instruments in Australia. It's really like a who's who of Australian jazz artists."
The album's title track has the feel of a newscast, and Angus says he consumes a lot of news. "I feel like I listen to the news just as much as I listen to music.
"So that influences me in terms of how I think of politics – I like to know what's happening in the world.
"For 'The State Of Things', I had this idea of overlaying music. When I played it live, to begin with, we just had the loop.
"I would create the loop with my guitar, and I wanted it to sound like a newscast. It was interesting because it took a lot of different twists and turns.
"I used some news clippings, but then Michael Perez, who recorded the album and ended up being a producer, had this idea to layer news clippings over the top to get more and more intense, then drop into the main first part of the song.
"That happened in post-production. Now, we'll use that concept when we play it live."
When Angus went to university to study music, he had two choices – study classical or jazz. Angus chose jazz.
"I was really into Joe Satriani and instrumental rock shred people like Steve Vai and Paul Gilbert," Angus says. "So I liked the concept of improvising, but I had never done it in a jazz context."
But Quentin listened to many jazz guitarists and was left cold. "Pat Metheny, John Scofield, Kenny Burrell, all of these different jazz guitar players.
"I just thought it sounded terrible, especially the contemporary guys like Kurt Rosenwinkel. I just didn't understand it – my ears weren't developed at that point."
Then his guitar teacher gave him a CD by Wes Montgomery. "For whatever reason, that hit me. The sense of phrasing – I think Wes Montgomery plays in a way that can bring in listeners who are not hard core jazz aficionados – so I always remember that as my door in."
With that in mind, Angus says there are some cover songs on the album: 'Somewhere Over The Rainbow', 'Pure Imagination' and 'What A Wonderful World'.
On this tour, Quentin hopes people who are not familiar with jazz or with his work will recognise the cover songs and be able to connect and enjoy the music that way.
"I'm trying to express some personal stories, and I would like people to be touched by the music in a fundamental way, and also enjoy the covers we are playing."
Quentin Angus 2022 Tour Dates
Fri 21 Oct - Jazz Music Institute (Brisbane)Sat 22 Oct - The Street Theatre (Canberra)
Sun 23 Oct - Melbourne International Jazz Festival
Mon 24 Oct - The Wheatsheaf Hotel (Adelaide)
Tue 25 Oct - Foundry 616 (Sydney)
