“A musician-drummer rather than a drummer-drummer,” according to JazzWise, drummer/percussionist Devin Gray is an artist interested in multiple musical directions, following those divergent pathways into dizzyingly diverse situations and experiences. Gray’s unique musical vision and inspiring energy has given Gray the opportunity to work with musicians from many different backgrounds and styles, such as Ingrid Jensen and Tony Malaby, Nate Wooley and Chris Speed, Sam Rivers and Kris Davis, Matt Mitchell and Uri Caine. His quartet Dirigo Rataplan features him alongside some of the most exciting improvisers of recent decades, including Ellery Eskelin (saxophone), Dave Ballou (trumpeter), and Michael Formanek (bass), who are all well-known among fans of creative music. Dirigo Rataplan’s music is full of earworm melodies and richly implied harmony. He also has a loose-limbed perception of rhythm as something tangible and flowing – like blood, as well as breath – which makes it a delight to listen to. This organic, engaging mix of composition, improvisation, structure, freedom, atmosphere, and dynamism will appeal to jazz fans from Ornette Coleman to Craig Taborn. from www.theoctoberrevolution.org
