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Matthew Shipp / William Parker: A Whole System Of
Now for the cryptic aspect: Call him an artist of cosmic consequence. He seems to think so himself. His Cosmic Piano (Cantaloupe Music, 2025), an outstanding solo recording, featured, in addition to the title tune, titles like "Cosmic Junk Jazz CNA," "Suburban Outer Space," and "A Cosmic Thank You." What can we make of all this? The type of music he makes is as out there as Cecil Taylor's, though it unfolds—especially on the disc at hand, Duo, with bassist William Parker—presents the Shipp vision in a much darker (roiling-storm-cloud darker) manner. He and the bassist give off a lurking, sinister vibe, like they are creeping along in a dark alley, slipping in and out of shadows.
Shipp and Parker have teamed up regularly since the pianist moved to New York City in the early 1980s. A simpatico has formed up in their time working with Ware that has resulted in almost 20 albums.
Category. O.K., free jazz. Avant-garde. The duo sounds as if it is stirring up the murky, jade-green water of a lagoon teeming with microbes as it searches for...what? A higher life form? Cosmic truth? Ship and Parker are artists who are, possibly, in search of these things. They are making music that—as pianist Satoko Fujii might say—no one has ever heard before.
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Track Listing
Deeper Fields; A Whole System of; The Essential Blue Note; Notions of Order; Momenta; Wave Light non Form.
Personnel
Matthew Shipp
piano
William Parker
bassAlbum information
Title: A Whole System Of | Year Released: 2027 | Record Label: Tao Forms
About Matthew Shipp
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