Opinion

Opinion is the 2004 release from Montreal's Upright, featuring eight instrumental tracks of fusion with a progressive touch. Drummer Benoit Verdant and bassist Eric Martin originally formed the group in 1996 (which later disbanded), but this reformed version features players such as Annam Nguyen on guitar, Jerome Chamerland on drums and Merc-Etienne Savage on keyboards. Saxman Bernard Baribeau rounds out the quintet, who treat the listener to good progressive jazz elements in a number of odd and standard time signatures. Bassist Martin writes, "About two years ago, I had the idea of resurrecting Upright and started to compose a new Upright album. For this album I wanted to make no compromise musically, so I decided to be the only composer and the leader of the band. I also tried to put together musicians I thought capable of reproducing the sound I had in mind. I would like to thank the musicians for their excellent performances. I am conscious that these pieces are very demanding and require a lot of effort to interpret correctly."