Masashi Harada: Masashi Harada Electric Trio

Violinist Mat Maneri seems to be turning up everywhere these days. With this release he aligns with percussionist Masashi Harada (the leader), Maneri's onetime New England Conservatory crony. Electric guitarist Philip Tomasic proves to be a vital link amid this rather free-spirited endeavor.

In the liners, Harada alludes to sounds connecting "in the most unexpected manner." With that, the artist cites "transformative technique" as the foundation for improvisation. Tomasic's slide guitar ruminations and ringing harmonics provide a metallic edge to these pieces, while Maneri utilizes the electric baritone violin throughout. But the gist of these frameworks resides within Harada's commandeering sense of rhythm. Abstract themes embed themselves into a series of crosscurrents and curvaceous fragments of sound, largely due to the musicians' assertively enacted exchanges. Harada's background chants and mock operatic vocalise might benefit those who have an acquired taste for this sort of expressionism.

On "A Geo-seismic View of Things," Harada leads the charge with a smattering of drums and percussion instruments atop Maneri's extended notes and Tomasic's resonant guitar lines. With this outing, the trio seemingly explores the infinitesimal corridors of time and space. Recommended.

Leo Records