Daylight Savings by Charles Rumback & John Tate

Daylight Savings is an acoustic bass and drum recording by Charles Rumback and John Tate. Recorded by John Hughes at HFT Studios in Chicago, this release shines the spotlight on what is commonly the backdrop of most jazz groups; the rhythm section. Charles Rumback - drums (Paul Bedal, Whirlpool, Stirrup, Colorlist, Via Tania) and John Tate - bass (Matt Wilson, Tony Malaby, Von Freeman) create an intimate and captivating sound on each track.

Charles and John’s track record together includes a working trio with pianist Jim Baker, several performances with Charles’ quintet featuring Jeff Parker, Jason Stein and Caroline Davis (scheduled to release their debut with ears&eyes Records in the fall), and many other one-offs in the jazz and creative music scene in Chicago.

In 2011, Charles began working on sketches for a new album and had been asking John to play with him on several gigs. They had already been playing together regularly with a variety of groups before Tate relocated to New York to attend the Juilliard School’s Jazz Artist Diploma program, studying with the great Ron Carter. Tate’s playing during that period took him to North, Central and South America, as well as Australia. However, the seed had already been planted and the personal and musical connection was evident.

Rumback says of the recording sessions for the album, “What was most appealing about doing this record was that we could play the music how we wanted, as dynamically as we wanted, knowing that if we got the music sounding right, then John Hughes would obsess about the sound of it until it sounded as good as possible. The end result was a very intimate record. One that I don’t usually have the luxury to make. I feel very fortunate that John Hughes was willing to work so hard with us on this project.”

“One of the challenges in working with such a limited palette, is that you still have to create a world that is complete," he adds. "John Tate creates layered textures with his bass. If you’re listening one way, you might hear or feel what’s on the surface, but if you lean in and listen deeper, his playing takes you further. There’s a lot more in there if you want to hear it.”

On the creative mixing process, Rumback says, “mixing with John Hughes was very easy for us. He would send something over and we would tell him how great it sounds, then he would re-work a few details in the mix and send another version that sounded even better. There are some wild choices that you might miss if you’re not paying close attention. The space of the album changes from track to track in subtle ways. Sometimes the pan of the drums is super wide, other times it’s almost mono. And the bass moves around from being front and center, to more on one side or the other. These are all things that Hughes did to kind of draw you in. Usually when I hear that kind of thing it’s distracting to my ear and takes away from the music because it’s usually done in a way that’s over the top, but John’s technique is subtle and he is able to make it feel incredibly natural.”

Charles Rumback’s musical career has ventured across many arenas. In addition to being an on-call drummer in the creative jazz scene in Chicago, he’s also worked closely with indie rock/electronic outfit, L’Altra (Acuarela Records), having toured throughout Japan and Europe. He’s performed and toured with singer/songwriter, Via Tania, as well as co-producing Via Tania’s recent successful album, Via Tania and the Tomorrow Music Orchestra (Narooma Records), alongside ears&eyes’ Matthew Golombisky who composed the music for the album. He plays regularly in Angela James’ band, sometimes working on production and arrangements in addition to his role as the drummer. He recently went to France to work on Nina Nastasia’s upcoming album with Steve Albini. His improvisational and sonic exploratory duo, Colorlist, with Charles Gorczynski, has released albums on the labels Serein, 482 Music, and Off! Records and worked with artists such as Josh Eustis (Telefon Tel Aviv, NIN) and John Hughes (HFT Records) with special guests such as Jeff Parker (Tortoise, Isotope 217) and Liz Payne (The Zoo Wheel, Town and Country). Colorlist has performed in the US, Canada and Italy. Stirrup, “the shimmering rhythm section of the Horse’s Ha (Time Out Chicago) includes Chicago’s premiere improvising cellist, Fred Lonberg-Holm (of Seval, Friction Brothers, Valentine Trio, Peter Brotzmann Chicago Tentet), bassist Nick Macri, (Heroic Doses, The Zincs), and Rumback. The band recently was invited to play at the Saalfelden International Jazz Festival, where they performed alongside artists such as Archie Shepp, Joachim Kuhn and many others. Charles is one third of the collaborative trio Whirlpool, with Caroline Davis and Jeff Swanson. Whirlpool is releasing their second record on ears&eyes later this year featuring guest cornetist, Ron Miles. You can also hear Charles on other ears&eyes releases including Paul Bedal’s Chatter and Jason Steele’s Some Wonderful Moment.

John Tate holds his own with an extensive biography having performed throughout North, Central, and South America, Europe, and Australia with musicians including Von Freeman, Matt Wilson, Tony Malaby, Ben Monder, Jeff Parker, Carl Allen, Rodney Jones, Bill Carrothers, Victor Goines, and George Fludas, among others.

After graduation, Tate moved to Chicago where he quickly became established as a first call bassist. In 2009, he joined the Moshier-Lebrun Collective and recorded two albums with the band, The Local Colorists (2013) and Touch and Go: The Studs Terkel Project (2014), which the group produced as recipients of Chamber Music America’s New Jazz Works Grant 2009 and were showcased on NPR’s JazzSet with Dee Dee Bridgewater in May 2012.

In 2010, Tate joined the band of long-time friend, Marquis Hill and recorded on Hill’s debut release New Gospel (Skiptone); Tate’s playing is exclusively featured on the track “Bass Solo.”

In the summer of 2011, Tate was accepted into the Jazz Artist Diploma program at the Juilliard School and relocated to New York City, fulfilling a lifetime goal of studying under master bassist Ron Carter. During his time at Juilliard, Tate recorded with trombonist, Wycliffe Gordon (Criss Cross Records), engaged in extensive international touring, and had the honor of performing with a twelve member bass choir including Christian McBride and Buster Williams for the tribute concert Ron Carter at 75: A Life in Music in Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall.

Charles and John’s track record together includes a working trio with pianist Jim Baker, several performances with Charles’ quintet featuring Jeff Parker, Jason Stein and Caroline Davis (scheduled to release their debut with ears&eyes Records in the fall), and many other one-offs in the jazz and creative music scene in Chicago.