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Hill Collective: Tonal Prophecy

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Hill Collective: Tonal Prophecy
The eight-piece Hill Collective hails from deep space via Brighton, a town an hour's train ride from London on Britain's south coast. In the contradictory way of many so-called collectives, it appears to have a leader, the alto saxophonist and composer/arranger Pete Piskov. But Piskov is there to marshal the madness not to repress it.

Tonal Prophecy is the ensemble's first studio album. It comes with resonances of Charles Mingus, Sun Ra, Ornette Coleman and the long gone but not forgotten magnificence of Rip Rig & Panic (featuring Don Cherry's daughter Neneh Cherry), a punk-jazz outfit from Bristol, another British coastal town. Generically there are Latin jazz mutations, the wilder shores of bop and free improv freak-outs. Along for the ride, too, is the Grand Unison Choir, nineteen friends of Hill Collective, who chant, chortle, sing and scream responses to the music.

If all this sounds anarchic, well, it is and it is not. It is more focused than Hill Collective's live performances appear to be, at least on the evidence of the YouTube below. It is also painted on a bigger textural canvas than the YouTube performance: Piskov fronts trumpeter Phil Smith, trombonist Will Roberts, harpist JoJo Circle, pianist luke congdon, bassist Frederico Micheli, drummer Joe Edwards and percussionist Sudhi S Pooniyil, making good use of the available sonic range.

The music is raw and it comes with the sort of energy and good vibes that gladden the heart.

Track Listing

Understanding; Value of Novelty; Health and Virtue; Answer to Two Questions; Dogma Loves You; Duality; Fear and Transcendence; A Joyous Sound.

Personnel

Hill Collective
band / ensemble / orchestra
Pete Piskov
saxophone, alto
Will Roberts
trombone
Phil Smith
trumpet
Sudhi Pooniyil
percussion
Additional Instrumentation

Pete Piskov: composer, alto saxophone, flute; Will Roberts: trombone, valve trombone; Grand Unison Choir (Gina Boyle, Jamie Broughton, Milo Costelloe, Oceanmae Davis, Edward Deeney, Noah Fox, Oscar Godfrey, Tom Gregory, Fae Haley, Rose Io, Tamara Klüver, Edmund Lloyd-Winder, Constance Nash, Ed Prideaux, Zosia Szymanowska, Joss Trevena-Samson, James Virtue, Freddie Willatt, Tam Zin).

Album information

Title: Tonal Prophecy | Year Released: 2024 | Record Label: Fin Du Monde

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