The way I hear it, Science Welded by Love is a duet between guitarist Simon Legault, who wrote most of the tunes, and the tenor sax of Frank Lozano. If this were classical music, the setlist suggests a time between Bach and Haydn. The flow of ideas is controlled, and each one is developed melodically. The intros are solo or duo—usually in imitation—presenting an attractive blend of the timbres of each instrument, with the percussion discretely in the background. As they work it out, Legault and Lozano trade places, front and back, balancing their phrasing, sometimes in counterpoint, and sometimes the guitar drops back to comp discretely. The whole album is a nice mix of those strategies. “I Hear Religion in Them,” and “Galyna’s Desert” make room for nice solos by Adrian Vedady on double-bass. The quartet colours its overall classical style with touches of Romance and smidges of Funk. “Counter-Intuitive moves pretty fast. “Galyna’s Desert is slow-dripping and dreamy. Skeptic II exfoliates a spooky electronic overdub that works well. “Dadar” generates heavy rhythmics—Mark Wheaton’s cymbals splash out in front, and the combo comes on a bit like a big band. The last two tunes have a touch of Latin. Overall, the vibe is mellow. Legault’s guitar has a forlorn sound. I think of Lenny Breau in Cabin Fever, a guy trapped in a moment trying to finger his way out.
Simon Legault Quartet. SCIENCE WELDED BY LOVE. 2013. Effendi Records. Simon Legault: guitar, Frank Lozano: tenor sax, Adrian Vedady: double-bass, Mark Wheaton: dr.