JAZZ REVIEW : Holland Quartet Starts Slow, Then Kicks in Afterburners

Maybe it was the warm weather. Or the end of summer doldrums. Or maybe Dave Holland’s quartet just had trouble getting into gear in its opening set at Catalina Bar & Grill Tuesday night.

The group’s unusual instrumentation--Eric Person on saxophones, Steve Nelson on vibes, Gene Jackson on drums and Holland on bass--promised some interesting timbral combinations. And the initial tunes, especially Thelonious Monk’s “Played Twice,” produced strikingly lush textural blendings of alto saxophone and vibes.

But the playing was uneven. Occasionally it was excellent--notably so in Holland’s soloing, and in a rolling sense of time between vibes and drums that juxtaposed nicely with Holland’s sure-footed bass lines. More often, however, the proceedings were tentative and uncertain.

Then, suddenly, in the middle of the final piece, Holland’s “Ebb and Flow,” everything changed. Jackson turned up the burners and began to generate an irresistible rhythmic torrent of energy. By taking his playing up another level, he sounded a wake-up call that immediately triggered the other musicians into their best work of the evening.

Finally, in perfect climax to a set that started slowly and ended in an accelerating rush of speed, Holland produced a lengthy cadenza amply justifying his reputation as one of the finest bassists in contemporary jazz.

* The Dave Holland Quartet at Catalina Bar & Grill, 1640 N. Cahuenga Blvd., Hollywood. (213) 466-2210. $12 cover tonight and Sunday; $15 cover Friday and Saturday; two-drink minimum. The Holland Quartet plays two sets each night, 8:30 and 10:30, through Sunday.