Carlton/Macpherson/Pass/Valenti - Undeniable

Undeniable brings together the four distinct musical voices of Jessica Carlton (trumpet), Alana Macpherson (alto saxophone and flute), Kate Pass (double bass), and Talya Valenti (drums). As a collaborative quartet, they began writing and developing music together in mid 2021 after Jess had moved to Perth from Melbourne, and Alana had temporarily returned to Perth from her studies in Graz. Undeniable is a celebration of ‘same time, same place’. That is to say that the quartet developed a collaborative ideation for this project with a vision of capturing the moment in time during which they all lived in the same city, and document their musical and situational alignment. This feeling was significant during the pandemic, when moments of togetherness felt fleeting and uncertain. The album features original compositions written by all four members of the band. These compositions draw inspiration from a number of sources including the loss of people who light up the world, the feminist movement in China, and bushwalking in Walyunga National Park. In spite of the variety of compositional styles and influences, the music has come together with cohesion and represents the quartet’s collaborative approach to making new music and improvising collectively. Inspired by a comment made to Talya by Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, the album title comes from a feeling that the music evokes - a sense of undeniable presence.