Last year I wrote in praise of corto.alto‘s seven-piece set at Glasgow Barrowlands, when locally-based multi-instrumentalist and producer Liam Shortall acknowledged the short space of time from merely getting a few of his friends together in his flat, to achieving what at the time seemed a high-point in an already storming career. Shortlisted for the 2024 Mercury Prize, his prolific output and gigs showcasing pin-sharp playing had been highly-praised.
Eighteen months on, and part of Edinburgh International Festival’s contemporary music programme, this (five-piece) gig at The Hub consolidates that early impression, delivering a fizzy mixture of enquiring, spontaneous jazz, electronic music and club culture. The electronic aspect seems especially to the fore tonight, in a relatively short set, Shortall punching-in loops on a guitar-case tabletop of pads and effects, as intuitively as jazz itself: speeding-up looped basslines, electronic bleeps and samples firing in all directions.
The playing is often fast and virtuosic, with plenty of attack, with the occasional breathing-space allowing for more thoughtful moments, such as Shortall’s harmonised high-register bass guitar solos and a solo piece by cool-as-ever keyboardist Fergus McCreadie, who provides subtle colouring as well as tumbling solos.
Highlights from the close-knit ensemble included passages of entirely unison playing, some beautifully-judged trombone and tenor sax harmonies between Liam and saxophonist Mateusz Sobieski, while drummer Graham Costello remains dazzling and quick-thinkingly responsive, and some imaginative edgy guitar soloing sliding in and out of the mix, which is for the most part quite dense when all players are at full-tilt. At one point Shortall hands one of his controller-pads to an audience member, allowing her to do some sample-triggering along with the band – not possible in most venues.
Cuts are included from soon-to-be-released album Some Small Fortune, and the band’s already-brimming back catalogue, including 2023’s Bad With Names album, which earned the Mercury nomination.
An all-ages full-house audience is a great sign: the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland-trained Shortall has been cited as making jazz popular with Gen-Z audiences, and collaborating with artists such as Fife’s Jacob Alon and Irish guitarist / vocalist Oscar Jerome, with performances at Montreux and Glastonbury, and tours of north America bringing blistering performances to new audiences. And with BBC 6Music’s Gilles Peterson, Jamz Supernova and Deb Grant among their fans, you can’t see corto.alto going wrong.
The new album release is to be accompanied by a series of record-store appearances, including Edinburgh’s Assai Records on 3rd Sept.
A stone’s throw from Edinburgh Castle, the Hub on Castle Hill is one of my favourite venues in the Edinburgh International Festival: formerly the Highland Tolbooth Kirk, the Festival’s home-base houses as agreeable a performance space as you can find – relaxed ambience, open seating (sofas, beanbags) space for drinks (in proper glasses), and subtle all-round sound reinforcement. It also showcases the best in contemporary international and classical artistry, and often avant-garde experimentation.
