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Fred Frith - Susana Santos Silva: Laying Demons To Rest
by John Sharpe
It seems Portuguese trumpeter Susana Santos Silva is riding the crest of a wave, following acclaimed collaborations with the likes of saxophonists Anthony Braxton and Mats Gustafsson and pianist Kaja Draksler. It is a trajectory only likely to be reinforced by her alliance with British guitarist Fred Frith on Laying Demons To Rest. They've been playing ...
Kirk Knuffke / Michael Bisio: For You I Don't Want To Go
by John Sharpe
At the root of successful enduring partnerships lies trust. Without it you need detailed instructions to make things work. Cornetist Kirk Knuffke and bassist Michael Bisio enjoy trust in spades. It allows them to dispense with signposts and cues, relying instead on the inspiration which comes from experience, skill and a shared purpose. Their collaborations include ...
Alex Ward Item 4: Furthered
by John Sharpe
Is there anyone else who doubles on clarinet and electric guitar? Multi-instrumentalist Eliot Sharp perhaps, but it is an otherwise fairly exclusive arena, one which Alex Ward has occupied since 1989 when he was already performing with Derek Bailey's Company at age 15. While the guitar remains his axe of choice for the rockier end of ...
ALATI: Ascending The Morning
by John Sharpe
Although combining poetry and jazz can sometimes be as thankless as mixing oil and water, ALATI has come up with a near perfect formulation. On Ascending The Morning, the three piece band, led by Norwich-based trumpeter Chris Dowding and completed by vocalist Brigitte Beraha and pianist Dave O'Brien, sets to music eight nature-inspired poems by Oxford ...
William Parker: Universal Tonality
by John Sharpe
Bassist William Parker has originated a personal philosophy which he calls Universal Tonality. He expresses his idea thus: “all sounds, like human beings, come from the same place. They have different bodies and faces, but the soul of each sound comes from the same perfect 'creation.'" The near two-hour double album which bears the same name ...
Joe McPhee & Evan Parker: Sweet Nothings For Milford Graves
by John Sharpe
Two soprano saxophones loosely harmonize. They finish each other's lines, languidly intertwine, pause for air at the same moment. And simultaneously end on a dime. Musical twins. In the wrong hands such empathy might become soporific; but with two of the planet's foremost improvisers on hand in the persons of Evan Parker and Joe McPhee, instead ...
Francisco Mela: Music Frees Our Souls Vol. 2
by John Sharpe
The three protagonists gaze out from the cover, variously smiling, appearing wryly amused, and looking stern. The image suggests a will to tackle things head on, without artifice or adornment. To tell it like it is. And that is the result: a thrilling no-nonsense representation of the combined artistry of drummer Francisco Mela, pianist Cooper-Moore and ...
Cory Smythe: Smoke Gets In Your Eyes
by John Sharpe
The startling molten sounds which open pianist Cory Smythe's Smoke Gets In Your Eyes signal that this will be no ordinary journey. On the first four cuts he draws on a stellar 11-strong squad which matches leading cutting edge figures such as saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock, trumpeter Peter Evans and cellist Tomeka Reid, with colleagues from the ...
Dominic Lash, Alex Ward: Antonyms
by John Sharpe
Can an album's contents be any less summed up by its title? While Antonyms suggests opposition, the collaboration between bassist Dominic Lash and clarinetist & guitarist Alex Ward evidences rather more empathy than contradiction. That is unsurprising given regular appearances in each other's bands as well as collective arenas going back at least to Barkingside (FMR, ...
Chad Fowler: Alien Skin
by John Sharpe
Although the group responsible for Alien Skin might be a one-off, unlikely to meet again in this exact configuration, it contains sufficient prior connections to vouchsafe cohesion, to go with the undoubted quality. Bassist William Parker furnishes the common denominator, having previously recorded with all of the participants, even relative newcomer, reed player Zoh Amba, while ...
