Ivo Perelman: Serendipity

Brazilian tenor sax titan Ivo Perelman's 22nd album for Leo Records crosses paths formerly traversed. Set out to be a trio date with pianist Matthew Shipp and drummer Gerald Cleaver, Perelman called bassist William Parker because one of the artists was late for the studio session, although everyone showed up; hence, the quartet format.

Perelman's mammoth sax manifestations prevail as one would anticipate. Featuring the lone extended piece "Serendipity," the quartet operates within a caravan of whirlwind improvisational activities and gradually shifting tides. The saxophonist's bristling plaintive cries instigate the nonstop momentum, other than some introspective interludes, intermittently initiated by Shipp.

The band toggles between bluesy outbursts, aggressive tactics, and darting multipart dialogues. At times, the quartet's canon may parallel a heavyweight slugfest. However, they periodically wind matters down and regenerate the improvisational quotient. Cleaver and Parker dish out some punishing metrics as the band members often take turns developing the pace, sparking change, and rapidly flowing advancements. Perelman is a proverbial force of nature by steering a high-impact focused sequence of events. It's largely about the musicians' dependencies, fluid interactions, and continual engineering processes serving as the common denominator.