REVIEWS

Mark Arroyo Trio - Two Sides to a Promise - (Curiousimprovisor Records)
Jam band jazz from this norcal guitarist with a deft and hypnotizing touch. More mushrooms and beer than ecstasy. Lose tight and a good ride. "Newborn" is math rock with a blues interlude, which is after all jazz. My faves, the bluesy "Three Brown Brothers", and "Don't Stop". - Hobart Taylor KUCI 88.9FM

Mark Arroyo Trio – Two Sides To A Promise (Curiousimprovisor): “I plan to create an album that continues in the direction that the music of trumpeter Miles Davis was headed before his retirement in the early 1970’s. That music was also a mix of Jazz, Rock, and Funk. Very contemporary, and very much a sound of his environment, it presaged the sound of the trio and Silicon Valley with its heavy use of rhythmic drive, electronics, and free-spirited improvisation. I want to re-visit and continue that journey in sound.” That was the description Mark Arroyo wrote for his vision of a prospective disc seeking funding on Indiegogo. It seems to have taken longer than expected to complete the project and I don’t hear much in the way of electronics, but the disc is clearly based in experimental rock with a clear improvisational base. This Bay area jazz rock trio has also been compared to Tony Williams Lifetime, but certainly not the latter’s earliest releases. Rather, it seems based in rock with a tendency toward jazz. Arroyo’s bandmates are Fred Paclibon (bass) and Kristian Buenconsejo (drums, except for one song when he is replaced nay Chris Leidhecker). I found it to be pretty solid throughout and certain tunes were absolutely killer! - Dave Rogers WTJU 91.1FM