R*Time and Doug Hammond Unite for Groundbreaking Jazz Album

The convergence of free jazz, avant-garde composition, and soulful melody that defines Reut Regev's R*Time band finds its latest expression in It's Now: R*Time Plays Doug Hammond, a collaboration with legendary composer and drummer Doug Hammond.

The project emerged from an unexpected connection at a gallery concert in Linz, Austria, where Hammond—known for staying only minutes at performances—remained for an unprecedented half hour of R*Time's set. That brief encounter sparked an artistic partnership that would bring Hammond from his adopted home in Austria to New Jersey, where the band spent an intensive week rehearsing and recording in trombonist Regev's home studio.

R*Time's interpretation of Hammond's compositions captures the delicate balance between Hammond's clear vision of his music and the band's explosive energy, particularly through Jean-Paul Bourelly's guitar work, which provides an aggressive yet sensitive counterpoint throughout the recording. This push-and-pull dynamic permeates the sessions, which took place at Tedesco Studios after days of home rehearsals where the musicians lived and worked together, allowing the music to develop organically through their shared daily rhythms.

The album's release on ESP-Disk marks an intriguing departure for the historic label, known primarily for its avant-garde and free jazz catalog. While It's Now maintains the adventurous spirit of ESP-Disk's legacy, the album focuses on Hammond's song structures rather than extended improvisations. The result showcases R*Time's ability to honor compositional frameworks while infusing them with contemporary energy.

I had the pleasure of speaking with R*Time's core duo—trombonist Reut Regev and drummer Igal Foni—about the making of It's Now: R*Time Plays Doug Hammond and the happenstance that birthed this inspired project.

Lawrence Peryer: I am curious about the genesis of this project. From what I read, you met Doug Hammond at a concert in Austria?

Reut Regev: It was our concert. We were on tour and passed by Linz, where he lives. He always checks out the concerts at the gallery in his town but usually stays for no more than five minutes. After the concert, the venue host told us, "You won't believe it, Doug stayed for half an hour. He never does that."

Igal Foni: We were familiar with his music. We played with a tuba player named John Sass, who had worked for many years with Doug Hammond. Then, we managed to get a grant, which allowed us to bring Doug over here and do this project.

Reut: We generally knew his music from Mingus, but we knew it more intimately because of our connection with John. We checked out a lot of the music they made together. Igal knew all of it, I think. I probably just knew the material of Mingus and John Sass.

Lawrence: Was the show he came to of yours with this ensemble?

Igal: It was a trio. We usually play in a trio format whenever we can get Jean-Paul on guitar. Doug said he liked the music and the attitude. I remember there was some kind of metal sculpture I wanted to play, and the venue said we had to ask the artist. They probably thought it was a bad idea and took it off the stage. So, I found a ladder in the basement and said I'd play that instead. I got lucky that night—that ladder was friendly to me.

Lawrence: You are always searching for new timbres and tones?

Igal: I am. I was also slightly insulted that the venue removed the sculpture without telling me about it. I remember later, we had a gig in Chicago where the bass player Mark Peterson couldn't make it because of a fire at the airport. We were feeling down, and out of the blue, I got this email from Doug just telling us he still remembered the music.

Lawrence: How did you approach song selection and repertoire for this record?

Igal: We like all of Doug's music, but we had some pleasant surprises. For example, there's this tune called "Risbys," which I originally knew from the trio with Muneer [Abdul Fataah] and Steve Coleman. We played it like a ballad, and it had lyrics. I didn't know that, but most of his music has song structures.

Reut: It was a three-way process. Igal picked a bunch of them, then I picked from those, and then we sent them to Doug and asked if there was anything else he thought we should include or maybe something that hadn't been played before.

Igal: He tends to say "no" to everything. When I was on the phone with him, I asked if there was a track never recorded before that would be cool to play. "No, I don't do that," he said. But then, on the second day, he dropped this tune called "Chico." It's one of my favorite tunes on the album.

Lawrence: Jean-Paul's guitar work on this record stood out. The guitar is such a presence, yet it never hijacks the recordings. As band leaders and collaborators, how do you think about direction for the rest of the band?

Reut: This was a really interesting situation, different than usual. Our band has recorded four records before this, mostly of original material. We also invited the other musicians to compose on one of the records. We had just one cover—an Ornette Coleman piece—between the three records.

This recording was the first time we invited a living composer to play his music, and he was present for both the rehearsal and the recording. Doug knows what he wants, but everybody in the room knows who they are. Playing his music requires a lot of strong energy. Doug has a clear picture of how it should be played and appreciates the musicians in the room. We all have our strengths.

There were many strong feelings and opinions, and I think you can sense that. There's also a lot of love for the music—you can feel everybody in the band loves it. We're all extremely respectful of Doug and how he wanted to do it. But at the same time, we're exploding out of that. It's like we're stopping ourselves and then exploding.

Lawrence: Igal, as a drummer interpreting another drummer's compositions, and again, with him there, what aspects of Doug's rhythmic work or concepts were you hoping to highlight? Or do you have to put that out of your head and do your thing?

Igal: I can't help but be myself. I don't like to read music. Luckily, I have a very good memory, but I'll answer the question with a quick story: We worked on this tune, and I'm playing it, and Doug says, "No." Okay, so he shows me. Then, we ask him to get out of the room. Jean-Paul said, "Okay, Doug, just give us a few minutes to work on the stuff." We work on it. Two minutes later, I opened the door, and he was by the door, his head bent to the left, and he said, "I'm shocked—nobody ever played my music like that."

Lawrence: These are not endless blowing sessions or free jazz explorations—you're very faithful to the idea that these are composed pieces, though obviously with room to solo and interpret. Many of his songs come across as though they would be perfect vehicles to blow over. I wonder about the intentionality of that.

Reut: That was Doug in the room. That's how he wanted it to be played—he wants the song to be a song, and then you can do a little with it. None of us, for even a moment, failed to realize the beauty of these songs. You can't escape it. For me, playing the music in the presence of such an incredible musician, I want to learn. That's how I learned music throughout all my years of doing this—from the people I played with.

Lawrence: Where did you record? Did you go to Austria, or did Doug come to the States?

Reut: We lived together then and invited everyone to stay in our house for a week and rehearse. Then we went to record at Tedesco Studios in New Jersey. We rehearsed in our music room, took breaks, and ate in the house. It was a nice intensive week of rehearsing for a few days and then going to the studio. Doug stayed in our Airbnb room, and Jean-Paul stayed in our guest room.

I was hearing that tension today while listening to the record, but that's a good thing. It was an emotionally strong environment, which is great for music. You want to feel something. I think it's what Doug likes in music—at some point, he said, "Yeah, there needs to be some tension."

Igal: He was just talking to me about it over the phone. He said sometimes your best work is when there's some tension.

You can purchase It's Now: R*Time Plays Doug Hammond from Bandcamp or Qobuz and listen to it on your streaming platform of choice. Visit Reut Regev at reutregev.com and follow her on Instagram.