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Jazz Articles about Laurence Pike
Paradise Cinema: returning, dream
by Geno Thackara
Was this made in a studio or beamed in from a jungle on some faraway planet? Perhaps a little of both--Jack Wyllie's saxophone does often find some alien- sounding contexts, as often shown by the futuristic electro-jazz-ambient sound sculpting of Portico Quartet or the wilder psychedelic fusion of Szun Waves. When it comes to Paradise Cinema, the sound is closer to the ground in more ways than one--its self-titled debut (Gondwana, 2020) came from some time soaking in the sounds ...
Continue ReadingSzun Waves: Earth Patterns
by Gareth Thompson
The second Szun Waves album, New Hymn To Freedom (The Leaf Label, 2018), was a critical smash that united fans of Radiohead and Pharoah Sanders alike. Media types drowned in a torrent of adjectives such as gleaming, sparkling and rippling, as if the combo of brass and electronics could produce anything else. Unless, of course, it was all done adagio in a deep bass register. For their third effort, the trio of Luke Abbott (keys), Jack Wyllie (sax) ...
Continue ReadingLaurence Pike: Holy Spring
by Gareth Thompson
Most artists in any medium have a need of sunlight, or at least the promise of it. Percussionist Laurence Pike is one third of Szun Waves, a jazzy crossover act whose emergence has been widely acclaimed. On his second solo album Pike is in thrall to spring, the harbinger of summer, though it feels as much a homage to existence itself. Perhaps more so when we consider Pike's previous effort, Distant Early Warning (The Leaf Label, 2018), with its nervous ...
Continue ReadingLaurence Pike: Distant Early Warning
by Gareth Thompson
Laurence Pike famously studied with jazz piano legend Mike Nock at Sydney's Conservatorium. The master and his apprentice then later worked together, both in concert and in the studio. But whilst the percussionist Pike may be shorn of his guru's input on this album, Nock's imprint is still tangible. Distant Early Warning was conceived as a technological and spiritual jazz suite. Pike is the only performer, though this is not just an album for drummers to groove on. ...
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