Quentin Coaxum Satellite @The Whistler, Or, Sampling Your Fears While Orbiting the Circle of Fifths

By Dominic Guanzon

Wednesday 07/12/2023

Every artist has a façade, no matter how thin, or made to replicate their true self. Anyone who takes to a stage has an inherent ego they want their audience to believe in. Chicagoland trumpeter Quentin Coaxum has managed to develop a creative voice so touching, so endearing to the soul, one might believe his façade has truly melted into the dreams, the euphoria his songs evoke.

Taking to The Whistler’s red-tinged stage, Coaxum debuted his latest project: Satellite, a group containing some of Chicago’s core corps of jazz musicians he has both taught and learned from. He has called his drummer Marcus Evans “one of my Marvel action figure cards when I was in high school,” in reference to Evans’ compositions influencing him. Conversely, Coaxum told the story of how his bassist Micah Collier was a student in his Music Theory I class about 10 years ago. As the former tells it, he was going over basic scales, when Collier gave him “dirty looks,” and told him “Mr. Quentin I already know all this!”

“As you can clearly see, he knows his circle of 5ths,” joked the bandleader.

Bassist Micah Collier (left) and drummer Marcus Evans (right). The Whistler, 07/12/2023. Photo by Dominic Guanzon.

Coaxum’s sound is a unique blend of bop-influenced jazz with an undercurrent of soft soul and wondrous spirituality. All of it exudes a kind of constant introspection that makes him as an artist so compelling. Simply put, it is aural beauty of the highest order, and it has been regular music for me for seven years strong.

His first album, 2014’s “Current,” is easily one of the best representations of Chicago music, jazz or otherwise. Songs like “Brown Bear,” “Burgundy Sunset,” and “2:00AM” ooze cool without needing a hard edge, while “Lush” and “November” render any heart full with joy. There were also religious overtones with “John 16:33” and “Pacific Suite, Pt. II: Calm,” but maintaining a universality even the secular could enjoy. “Friends” even drops spoken word.

But it’s “1cent,” with its hope-inducing vamps, energizing melody, and sparkling piano pattern that captures the essence of the album, the artist, and the city. It’s a composition and a recording that paints murals in the mind; imagination unleashed. I was lucky enough to talk with Coaxum in 2016 about the project and discuss every song. I mentioned “1cent” might make a good theme song, which he expressed curiosity about. With Chicago seeing a resurgence as a film location for shows like “South Side” and “The Bear,” the case may be stronger than ever.

Regardless, Coaxum’s debut was relief for the musical mind in an era where drill music was dominating hip-hop with its raw aggression, and director Damien Chazelle was rocking the mainstream perception of jazz with “Whiplash” (and later “La La Land”). Today, “Current” persists as relief for the human spirit. I can’t help but put it on when taking the CTA on a sunny afternoon.

In September 2020, that sound evolved and matured with his sophomore release “You & I,” which he also debuted at The Whistler the following year when venues began opening up. In that album, he introduced lyrics with “Some Things Have Changed” and “I Cannot Explain” featuring vocals by Mesonjixx. He also provided more songs in the bop tradition like “Selah” and “East Boogie Rundown.” Overall, he pushed the heart front and center in a more personal outing.

The most notable addition is the use of sampled quotes from seminal black figures such as Maya Angelou and James Baldwin on most tracks. It’s a choice that’s on-the-nose, but works so well with Coaxum’s bleeding heart.

Nowhere is the quotation more poignant than in the song “Goodbye Alton,” a mournful song that laments the 2016 death of Alton Sterling. That song in particular was debuted at Hyde Park Jazz Fest 2016 just three months after the fatal killing, and it sadly gained more relevance on its album appearance four years later. Time time, three months after the world witnessed George Floyd being murdered.

It includes bass arco, long tones from the trumpet reminiscent of “I Remember Clifford,” and quotes from Angelou and Baldwin encouraging listeners to “never stop talking it” and asking “how much time do you want for your ‘progress’?” In contrast to other tributes to Sterling that hit hard with righteous anger, such as Wayfaring’s ferocious tribute at that same Hyde Park Jazz Fest, “Goodbye Alton” supplies a different angle for those who need a reminder that love is still necessary to achieve justice.

The whole album is an ideal sequel, exploring fresh directions such as quote sampling and more direct social commentary, while staying connected to the previous work’s aesthetic of a kind of hip grace. Nowhere is this more prevalent in the opener “Constellation,” featuring an iconic twinkle in the piano that is required on at least one Quentin Coaxum album. It again proves to be the soaring theme of the whole work. This time, the slightest guitar twinge is added, and it supplies a special spark, before igniting dramatic half-time feel drops that up the ante to the upper atmosphere.

Coaxum offered vinyl of his sophomore release “You & I.” The Whistler, 07/12/2023. Photo by Dominic Guanzon.

Back at Satellite’s debut at The Whistler, Coaxum opened with “Constellation”, with Julius Tucker on his keyboard supplying the distinct piano line. The move to use a song that’s been out for three years appeared to connect that time of growth as an artist to the night’s most recent endeavor. It could even signal “You & I” being the retroactive debut album of Satellite.

Following that, Coaxum took several minutes on a Roland SP-404 Sampler to play cuts from a pre-recorded R&B track as Dustin Laurenzi occasionally joined on a separate sampler machine entirely. The samples not only played spoken dialogue, but entire music beds from a typical rhythm section. The decision to outright replace the live musicians for up to minutes at a time is a bold one given the caliber of those behind him, but that may well be the point. If the audience knows they’re damn good, the choice for them to not play is clearly a concerted one.

Eventually, the pre-recorded rhythm section faded out, with the live one coming in on Coaxum’s command. This process would repeat itself throughout the night, as the sampler supplied the nexus to the set list.

At times, the sampler was all that was being played. Coaxum notably played the phrase “why feel anything?” followed by a track of someone providing testimony of what may be their depressive phase. Spectral sounds occasionally interrupted as artistically awkward pauses crept in. It was an unsettling moment of the night, but gave a vivid idea of what kind of experiences the bandleader may have gone through.

Coaxum (right) commanded the band through multiple cues as the sampler bookmarked much of the night. The Whistler, 07/12/2023. Photo by Dominic Guanzon.

Saxophonist Dustin Lauranzi has been a long-time sideman for all sorts of group efforts from Juan Pastor’s Chinchano to bassist Katie Ernst (who is, coincidentally, his wife). He also appeared as a staple on Coaxum’s first two albums. It seems he’s always ready with reeds in tow, and the duo’s work on samplers was yet another showcase of his arsenal. The duet of machines was something rarely seen in the more concerted jazz circles, but it felt right at home in more crossover venues like Humboldt Park’s California Clipper, Evanston’s SPACE, or this Logan Square club.

Dustin Laurenzi (left, ts) with Quentin Coaxum. Both would later play samplers simultaneously. The Whistler, 07/12/2023. Photo by Dominic Guanzon.

The trumpeter also showcased a song called “Out of My Mind,” in tribute to Chicago vocalist Donny Hathaway. Coaxum had been weaving samples of Hathaway’s version of “Superwoman” throughout the night. To hear an original composition in tribute is an extra layer of love. Coaxum also pointed out the bass line being a tribute to one of Hathaway’s songs, and I believe the five-note descending figure played by Collier comes from “Je Vous Aime (I Love You)” from Hathaway’s debut album “Everything is Everything.”

Artists from around the Chicago jazz scene were also in attendance, deepening the layers of support and tradition. Of particular note was trumpeter Marques Carroll, who Coaxum played with on the former’s Trumpet Summit series at Andy’s, among other collaborations. In May, Carroll performed a set at Andy’s featuring his latest album work, and I noted a similarity between Coaxum, Carroll, and trumpeter Marquis Hill. It’s good to see this particular strain of sound continues with Satellite.

Support from Chicago jazz artists was felt throughout the house. The Whistler, 07/12/2023. Photo by Dominic Guanzon.

Introducing the band for the first time as they vamped on their group’s eponymous song, Quentin told the crowd to “do some research on the stars and where the stars come from, and then learn about what that has to do with you. And then learn about what satellites do.”

“Satellite,” the song itself, is everything you wish for a Quentin Coaxum song to be: invigorating, ascending, and irresistibly hopeful. All that maintaining a very static melody of two notes: an eighth note pickup followed by a long tone over two bars repeated over and over again as the chords listfully move. It will no doubt be the theme of the inevitable Satellite album that will complete the trifecta “1cent” and “Constellation” setup.

Jeff Swanson (g) played seemingly fan-favorite solos of the night and appeared on “You & I.” The Whistler, 07/12/2023. Photo by Dominic Guanzon.

Julius Tucker (left, p) played a critical role to Coaxum’s compositions. The Whistler, 07/12/2023. Photo by Dominic Guanzon.

Quentin Coaxum. The Whistler, 07/12/2023. Photo by Dominic Guanzon.

“We are Satellite. It’s a good thing because I’m…I’m here,” to the laughter of the crowd, “I don’t want to talk about it!”

With the debut of this semi-new direction, Satellite appears poised to record, make the rounds in the city, and spread their soaring message.

On the Donny Hathaway album “These Songs for You, Live!” Hathaway introduces the Stevie Wonder-composed song “Superwoman” as being “from the black pool of genius.” Listening to Hathaway and Wonder, one may not immediately hear the connection to Quentin Coaxum. Indeed, Coaxum does not sing like those vocalists, or sing with his voice at all.

But his heart does beat with the same kind of façade-shattering soul that has inspired the world over. So if ever someone is looking for that kind of love through artistry, they can catch Satellite taking off very soon in Chicago.

Quentin Coaxum Satellite is:

Quentin Coaxum (t)

Dustin Laurenzi (ts)

Julius Tucker (p)

Jeff Swanson (g)

Micah Collier (b)

Marcus Evans (d)