Jazz Archives

What a wonderful and progressive album, while I don't know whether Stomu would have intend to make a progressive rock album or not.
Stomu Yamashta is a Japanese percussionist and, as everyone has said, one of jazz-rock pioneers all over the world. This 'Raindog' is his fifth album from Island Records, faithfully re-produced with the 'Raindog' event in London - after his previous band East Wind breaking out. The quality and activity of this album can notify us that Stomu would not be depressive in the disbandment and would be still positive for music and creation. The first track Dunes has jazzy and speedy percussive sounds tinged with slight psychedelic or spacey flavour. His wife's violin is very funky and flexible without any restriction - she can absolutely make his percussion more brilliant. Daito Fujita's bass is very simple but very strict for Stomu's percussion - this combination is so terrific.
Heavy and serious atmosphere we can feel strongly and imminently. Wait, in the middle part are steady and relaxed sounds with some pleasure but we cannot be completely relaxed mmm, why? Maybe some dangerous glimmers we can see even in the part. The latter part has an exotic percussion and streaming guitar sound, and Murray Head's melancholic voices plus Maxine Nightingale's graceful scats. Cheers for wonderful 15 minutes! Following track 33 1/3 is, we can say, the one-man show by Stomu. Lots of his percussive equipments - bells, a triangle, a gong, conga or bongo drums, and so on - can hit and blow our brain. There are various musical elements from the whole world. Please enjoy taste of the world itself. In Rainsong Stomu's drums and Hisako's violin can open the door of fantastic 'rainy' stage. The track is the most of rock and roll in this album. Not progressive but very enjoyable song I'm sure. We can sing and dance to it!
The Monks Song is also attractive with percussive sounds in the beginning. The middle part has so sad and painful lyrics by Murray's voices with much passion. Of course, Stomu's percussion should have more passion too - for death and reality. Shadows was composed by Hisako and Brian Gascoigne, not by Stomu. Here is Japanese flavour with fantastic violin and piano. Hisako's violin sometimes sounds like Koto, Japanese harp. What a graceful and with Oriental beautiful gem in this aggressive, progressive work! Ishi(in English, stone? or intention? In fact, the title is written with Japanese Katakana so I cannot realize which is correct.) can start with children's pleasant voices and Stomu's laidback percussion. Added avant-garde violin and hypnotic guitar sounds, Ishi can be completed. As honestly I say, I feel this work is exactly psychedelic rather than jazzy...sorry for jazz-rock fans. :-)
At last I say as follows: On the sleeve, Stomu's eyes should see another world - music scene and mad science.

:::Review by DamoXt7942:::

Stomu Yamash'ta – Raindog (1975)

1. Dunes (15:00)
2. 33 1/3 (7:40)

Side Two
3. Rainsong (5:03)
4. The Monks Song (6:01)
5. Shadows (5:08)
6. Ishi (6:59)

Credits
- Stomu Yamashta / percussion
- Daito Fujita / bass
- Brian Gascoigne / piano, clavinet, synthesizer
- Hozumi Tanaka / drum kit
- Tsuneo Matsumoto / guitar
- Gary Boyle / guitar
- Hisako Yamashta / violin
- Murray Head / vocal
- Maxine Nightingale / vocal

Notes
LP; Island records ILPS-9319
CD; Universal Island Records UICY-94106

One might be forgiven for mistaking the Lounge Lizards' debut album for a traditional jazz release at a glance, what with the two Thelonious Monk covers and the participation of producer Teo Macero (who had previously worked with such heavyweights as Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck and Ella Fitzgerald, to name just a few). No, while there's definitely great respect shown here for the jazz tradition, the members are obviously coming at it from different backgrounds -- most especially guitarist Arto Lindsay, whose occasional atonal string scraping owes far more to his experience in New York City's no wave scene than to quote unquote traditional jazz. In fact, the two aforementioned Monk covers seem a strange choice when you actually hear the band, which has more in common with sonic experimentalists like Ornette Coleman or Sun Ra. That's not to say that this is too experimental; saxophonist and lead Lizard John Lurie knows when to blow noise and when to blow melody, and ex-Feelies drummer Anton Fier manages to infuse a good rock feel into the drum parts even when he's playing incredibly complex rhythms. The end result is a album that neatly straddle both worlds, whether it's the noir-ish "Incident on South Street," the art-funk of "Do the Wrong Thing," or the thrash-bebop found in "Wangling"."

:::Review by Sean Carruthers:::

The Lounge Lizards - The Lounge Lizards (1981)

1. Incident On South Street 3:21 - Written-By - J. Lurie
2. Harlem Nocturne 2:04 - Written-By - Earle Hagen
3. Do The Wrong Thing 2:39 - Written-By - J. Lurie , S. Piccolo
4. Au Contraire Arto 3:22 - Written-By - J. Lurie
5. Well You Needn't 1:53 - Written-By - Thelonius Monk
6. Ballad 3:22 - Written-By - J. Lurie
7. Wangling 2:58 - Written-By - J. Lurie
8. Conquest Of Rar 3:12 - Written-By - A. Fier , E. Lurie , J. Lurie
9. Demented 2:01 - Written-By - J. Lurie
10. I Remember Coney Island 3:27 - Written-By - J. Lurie
11. Fatty Walks 2:51 - Written-By - J. Lurie
12. Epistrophy 4:12 - Written-By - Kenneth Clarke, Thelonius Monk
13. You Haunt Me 3:40 - Written-By - J. Lurie

Credits
Bass - Steve Piccolo
Drums - Anton Fier
Guitar - Arto Lindsay
Keyboards - Evan Lurie
Saxophone - John Lurie

Notes
Recorded at CBS Recording Studios in New York on July 21-22, 28-29, 1980. Mixed at CBS Recording Studios in New York on August 6, 14-15, 1980. Anton Fier uses Sonor drums and Paiste cymbals

After the excellent "Intimate Conversations", Joe McPhee and Mikołaj Trzaska release a new album together, again with Jay Rosen on drums, but now also with Dominic Duval on bass. You might say it's Trio X + Mikołaj Trzaska, and that's correct if you look at the names, but not when you listen to the music. This band does not even touch on the "traditional" Trio X repertoire. McPhee plays sax and pocket trumpet, Trzaska alto sax and bass clarinet.
The album starts with "The Magician", with tribal sounding tones from Trzaska, full of primitive incantations, slowly being joined by trumpet, bass and drums, and developing into a slow, smooth and warm open lyrical exploration. The fit between Trzaska and McPhee is almost perfect, since they have the same attitude to music, one of freedom, respect and authentic warmth. That doesn't mean they don't go wild at times, but the dominant element is careful and reverent. The first track immediately illustrates this range, from tribal over sensitive dialogues to more boppish uptempo steaming improvisations. The second piece is more free form in nature, with Duval playing arco, McPhee delving into the deeper regions of his tenor, Rosen accentuating, and Trzaska's alto adding layers of sensitivity on top. "Sex Toys" is more minimalist and subdued, with the musicians scarcely breaching through the silence, and I think rarely a track has received such an inappropriate name (there isn't even an orgasm of sound to conclude). The first CD ends with "I Remember Max", a luckily not too long drum solo by Jay Rosen, dedicated to Max Roach.
The second CD continues with the minimalist approach, with a long dialogue between the two saxes, interlocking and interweaving calm yet urgent phrases, with McPhee doing some quiet singing while blowing his sax, bursting open into a screaming duel, waking the sleeping dogs of drums and bass in the process.
"Contra-ception" is a bass solo track by Duval, nohting wild, nothing too smooth either, and when he starts using his bow, some shouting brings back the sax for one of the most intense pieces of the album, that shifts mood a little over half-way when McPhee picks up his pocket trumpet: for almost spiritual gospell-like lyricism. One of the most beautiful tracks is the long and slow "Turtles Crossing", a tune that was already on McPhee's Jumala Quintet release with the same name. As the title suggests, there is no need to hurry (from the turtle's perspective of ignorance), but the deep tension of the menace of being crushed is omnipresent, and this horror of course gets articulated musically near the end of the track, but it ends happily.
Again, Trzaska is a perfect fit for this band, who deliver a strong, balanced and varied album of great instrumental power and coherent musical expression, full of emotional depth and moments of fun. Enjoy!
Recorded at Alchemia, Kraków, November 8, 2007

:::Review by stef:::

Joe McPhee, Dominic Duval, Jay Rosen, Mikołaj Trzaska – Magic (2010)

Disc1
1. The Magician
2. War Criminals
3. Sex Toys
4. I Remember Max (Drum Solo)

Disc 2
1. Return of the Terror
2. Contra-ception (Bass Solo)
3. Political Stripper
4. Turtles Crossing
5. A Night in Alchemia
6. Transaction

Credits
Joe McPhee - trumpet, alto sax
Dominic Duval - bass
Jay Rosen - percussion
Mikołaj Trzaska - alto sax

The German band Tortilla Flat, named after a famous John Steinbeck novel, released their only record "Für ein ¾ Stündchen" as a, now highly sought-after, private pressing in 1974. The mainly instrumental record presents a Canterbury influenced jazz-rock reminding Dutch bands Supersister and to a lesser extent Focus and the German band Tomorrow's Gift with a strong accent on e-piano and flute. Apart from the musical influence the band showed also some typical Canterbury tongue in cheek humour with the title "Für Ein ¾ Stündchen", pointing in a humerous way to the average length of a vinyl record, the gothic lettered schoolbook cover and some short funny vocal elements.
The record is recommended for Canterbury and jazz-rock fans

:::Review by Martin Horst:::

Tortilla Flat - Für ein ¾ Stündchen (1974)

1.Tortilla Flat (9:59)
2.Temperamente (5:53)
3.Fati Morgani (3:55)
4.Rumpelstiltzchen (4:59)
5.Leere, Chaos, Schöpfung (10:15)
6.Obit, Anus, Obitanus (4:32)
7.Möhre (8:27)

Credits
-Hermann Josef Bosten/ flute, guitar
-Manfred Herten/ guitar
-Franz Brandt/ Keyboards
-Heribert Schippers/ bass
-Hans Friedrich Bosten/ drums, glockenspiel
-Albert Schippers/ percussion

Second album of Soft Heap where Pip Pyle had obligation elsewhere and he was replaced by Dave Sheen, thus Soft Head and the album Rogue Element, of which I'm sure, the elephant occupying the artwork is certainly aimed at. So this album was recorded the following year than the debut and released on the Ogun label, already familiar to progheads for Keith Tippett's works. This is the recording of gig in deep France.
Opening the album on the Dean-penned Seven For Lee, the album starts on a Soft Machine mode with Dean soaring over the rest of the band, but Gowen and Hopper are just behind Elton, making this track the easiest of the album. Hopper's seven Drones veers instantly into dissonant ground, proof that not only Dean was able to follow Marshall around the Machine's fifth album. Nothing too hard for the novice's ears with Gowan's soft electric piano bedding the track. More accessible is the Gowan-penned Remain So, a piano- dominated tune.
The flipside opens on CRRC, written by Alan, and last some 14 minutes, which is enough to let you know that he's a full member of Heap, despite having Gilgamesh still under way (with Hopper appearing), but the "tune" appears more real jazz than fusion or jazz-rock, the mid-song energy outburst not bringing much new. The closing One Three Nine is just more of the same as the album offered you so far.
Ogun released a Mini-Lp reissue of this album in 96, and had the luck to find two extra unreleased tracks (apparently from the same concert, since the ambiance and sound are the same as on the album) and included them as bonus on this release. The 17-mins Dean composition Ranovais a slow starting tune on piano, than sax with Sheen Hoppering on the train a while later. Not too dissonant, but definitely beyond the huge majority of Machine standards, but by Heap/Head standard, quite normal C You Again is really very slow and mega-dissonant, making this track the weaker point on the album, but it remains part off that night's concert.
So the two bonus tracks are excellent added value for the original album, which makes the new version lasting some 60 minutes, which is plenty enough and not lasting too long. I wouldn't call any Heap/Head album essential Canterbury scene music, but they are exactly the kind of albums that consolidate the genre.

:::Review by Sean Trane:::

Soft Heap - Rogue Element (1978)

1. Seven For Lee (8:51)
2. Seven Drones (4:25)
3. Remain So (4:48)
4. Terra Nova (16:52)

5. C You Again (4:13)

6. C.R.R.C. (14:00)
7. One Three Nine (6:33)

Credits
- Elton Dean / alto sax, saxello
- Alan Gowen / electric piano, synthesizer
- Hugh Hopper / bass guitar
- Dave Sheen / drums

Splatterpink were a Bolognese jazzcore quartet and this is (obviously?) their third album . The music contained is some of the most fiery in the whole genre, even compared to foreign bands. Coarse funk-blues shards, based on crunching, Primus-like basslines and tarry baritone sax bursts. Throaty vocals, often delving in growl and expressionist roars, cynical, crude lyrics and frantic odd-meter tempo shifts are other core elements of Splatterpink's arsonist formula. A scorching, reckless record which bears some resemblances to Anatrofobia, Zu and even King Crimson at times, but with an even more jolting attitude.

:::More info about Splatterpink on myspace:::

Splatterpink - Industrie Jazzcore (1995)

1. Treno di pensieri (consequenziali) 4:31
2. Status 5:11
3. Soffocare il topo nella sabbia 5:25
4. Pericolo! 4:34
5. Alex 4:10
6. Dio Squalo 6:02
7. Bestie di cuoio 4:18
8. Teste parlanti 4:19
9. Io? 1:19

Credits
Bass - Diego D'Agata
Drums - Leonardo Saracino
Flute - Alessandro Meroli
Guitar - Federico Bernardi
Percussion - Leonardo Saracino
Saxophone - Alessandro Meroli
Voice - Alessandro Meroli , Diego D'Agata
Written By - Metello Orsini (tracks: 8) , Splatterpink (tracks: 1 to 9)

Notes
Recorded on 16 analog tracks at PEDALE BAROQUE, Bologna.
Mixed at NEW SUBCAVE, Casalecchio di Reno, Bologna.
Digital Editing at LOST LEGION SONIC LAB.

Contemporary Noise Sextet is the band established by Kapsa brothers, who earlier formed Something Like Elvis the legendary emo-hardcore band. Formerly known as Contemporary Noise Quintet/Quartet. CNS musicians are also: Tomek Glazik, saxophones (Kult, ex-4Syfon, Sing, Sing Penelope), Wojtek Jahna, trumpet (Sing, Sing Penelope, Mordy) and the guitar player Kamil Pater who joined the band in November 2006 and lately Patryk Weclawek (bass) who replaced Pawel Urowski.
CNS’s music can be described as energetic jazz with the elements of film music. However, the variety of sounds does not allow pigeonholing their music style unambiguously. The debut record “Pig Inside The Gentleman” was released in autumn 2006. It collected favorable reviews and became one of the records of the year in the plebiscite of III Program of Polish Radio. In November CNQ toured in several cities of Poland. The concerts were enthusiastically received.

What is more, the band gained approving reviews in press:

CNQ convinces straight away to have their own idea for music, which is not only attractive but also perfectly produced. Pig Inside The Gentleman is the record everyone should reach for, the one of the best Polish releases in 2006. (Piotr Lewandowski PopUp Magazine).

SOMETHING LIKE JAZZ Contemporary Noise Quintet: jazz music without jazz, film music without movie but something splendid instead! Despite the band’s name suggesting noisy music for the chosen ones, CNQ appears to be a revelation for everyone. Beautiful, hard, romantic piano tunes in the dialogue with brass section. Simple and extraordinary emotional compositions leading to the climax which makes the flesh creeps while listening. Hair bristle on the heads of those who remember the musical past of CNQ’s members… (Bartek Chacinski Przekroj)

Contemporary impresses with maturity and class. There is elegance as well as punk energy. The compositions are unbelievably spacious but on the other hand all fulfilled with instruments from the superb rhythm combo to the greatly equipped brass section. The roots of the most of CNQ’s musicians reach harder music, sometimes even heavy metal what bears excellent interest. The compositions are vigorous and expressive. The name of the band must be remembered because it undoubtedly is Polish export commodity. (Diggin the Shelf)

Contemporary Noise Sextet - Unaffected Thought Flow (2008)

1. Unaffected Thought Flow (Part 1) 2:20
2. A Girl Killed Nicely 3:58
3. Procession in the Fog (With the Dogs Barkin'...) 10:32
4. Nautilius 5:17
5. New Machine on a Dance Floor 8:33
6. No Marks, No Body, Not Guilty... 3:52
7. Zero Gravity 5:55
8. Unaffected Thought Flow (Part 2) 2:41

Credits
Kuba Kapsa - piano, Rhodes, synthesizer
Wojtek Jachna - trumpet
Tomek Glazik - tenor, baritone saxophones, syntezator
Kamil Pater - guitar, baritone guitar
Patryk Weclawek - bass, bass guitar
Bartek Kapsa - drums

Recorded
at Electric Eye Studio, Szubin, Poland, August 2008

Before the opening fanfare, there are the sounds of a belch, a laugh, and a drum roll. For the first time in any X-Legged Sally recording, here is something you might not want to play again, and the CD has only been on for 20 seconds. Not an auspicious start, and not the only misfire on this wildly uneven album. The Land of the Giant Dwarfs is comprised of 18 often very brief tracks, with touchstones here and there to the inspired mania and occasional subtle charm of the band's previous three albums. There are insistent grooves ("Skip XXI"), waltz and tango-flavored rhythms ("Yesbody 2" and "Yesbody 1"), inventive instrumental combinations (Pierre Vervloesem's heavy metal guitar and Bart Maris' muted trumpet on "Fes II"), atmospheric instrumental blues ("Poor Man's Rain," with some great clarinet from Peter Vermeersch), and even touches of swinging avant jazz and funk ("Starfinger," a showcase for keyboardist Peter Vandenberghe). There are two particularly strong tracks at the CD's close: "Quorns" is moody and ominous, with its tragic tale of doomed lovers (spoken in voice-over by Vermeersch) and stuttering, unsettling unison lines from keyboard and clarinet, and the evocative "Yesbody 1," which builds dramatically to become nearly thrilling before its subtle finish. But elsewhere there are dumb vocal samples ("Skip XXI"), insipid lyrical content ("Hair"), and tunes that seem complex just for complexity's sake ("R.I.P."). As the album leaps from sublime to sophomoric and back again, a sense of disappointment begins to prevail, particularly for anyone who is familiar with X-Legged Sally's previous stellar releases and who might have high expectations for this, the band's first full-length CD released on a U.S. label. Unlike any of the group's CDs on the Belgian Sub Rosa imprint, this one, on Knitting Factory, feels either dumbed down or naughtied up for the American audience. It's as if bandleader Vermeersch decided that the best way to gain popularity in the U.S. would be to push the influence of Frank Zappa more to the forefront, with an unfortunate focus on Zappa's most questionable vocal- and song-based work. How else to explain the vocal samples on "Skip XXI" that fixate on genitalia and masturbation? How outrageous! And doesn't the shopworn sentiment about not judging a man by the length of his hair (in the cleverly titled "Hair") arrive at least 25 years late -- or is there hopefully some sense of irony here? The overdubbed and heavily treated vocals of newcomer Thierry Mondelairs suggest more calculation to expand the band's rock-based audience. At times Mondelairs effectively takes the avant out of X-Legged Sally's avant-prog, turning the ensemble into -- horrors! -- a mere progressive rock band. But of course Vermeersch remains in charge, still writing the lion's share of the material, and now often demonstrating a greater interest in music that is difficult to perform than difficult music that is interesting and fun to listen to. Nowhere is this more evident than on "R.I.P.," an intermittently hard-rocking tune that throws constant changes at the listener; it feels like about ten songs cobbled together into one, with no sense of internal logic. The convoluted structure of "R.I.P." works against one of X-Legged Sally's previous greatest strengths: the ability to lock into a hard-charging groove and drive it to incendiary heights. And yet, 36 of The Land of the Giant Dwarfs' 59 minutes are phenomenal and as strong as anything X-Legged Sally ever recorded. Unfortunately, however, picking and choosing among the tracks is a necessity, something not part of the listening experience with any previous X-Legged Sally release.

:::Review by Dave Lynch:::

X-Legged Sally (XLS) - The Land of The Giant Dwarfs (1995)

1. Anthem - The Land Of Giant Dwarfs 1:05
2. Fes III 4:53
3. R.I.P. 3:36
4. Yesbody 2 2:42
5. Skip XXI 6:27
6. Yesbody 4 2:10
7. Charge 2:08
8. Yesbody 3 1:49
9. Lie To Me 1:32
10. Glad You're Dead 1:27
11. Home 3:04
12. Hair 5:
13. Poor Man's Rain 4:49
14. Starfinger 7:26
15. Mono Dolby 1:00
16. Owl Harry 3:10
17. Quorns 3:22
18. Yesbody 1 2:43

Credits
Bass - Paul Belgrado
Clarinet - Peter Vermeersch
Composed By - Peter Vermeersch (tracks: 1, 4 to 6, 8 to 11, 13 to 18) , Pierre Vervloesem (tracks: 3, 7)
Drums - Danny Van Hoeck
Guitar, Percussion - Pierre Vervloesem
Keyboards - Peter Vandenberghe
Saxophone - Michel Mast
Trumpet - Bart Maris
Vocals - Thierry Mondelaers

Anything that has members of Level 42, King Crimson and Egg collaborating together is, to be honest, a very amazing thing. Touching everything from jazz-fusion to psychedelia to the ever interesting and immersive Canterbury Scene, Mr. Jakszyk's "The Bruised Romantic Glee Club" is one of those rare extravagenzas that should be more known about and appreciated than it actually is, because there is an intimacy and chemistry here that you won't find often.
A double album, with side one being originals and side 2 being covers of bands that Jakko admires, 'Glee Club' has quite a few high points on both sides of the coin. Tracks like 'When We Go Home" and "The Things We Throw Away" are appropriately emotional and make very fine use of Jakko Jakszyk's unusually accomplished vocal abilities, while his covering of King Crimson's 'Islands' (which features Fripp himself) is apt and intimate in all the right places. Frequent use of sax, woodwinds and piano flesh out some of the more cinematic touches here and there, while Jakko's distinctive guitar stylings brush in and out to keep the compositions focused and energized when needed.
Basically, while I often consider collaborations overrated and rarely resulting in material that hits the mark more than these artists are capable of doing on their own, the ensemble that Mr. Jakszyk assembled here has worked wonders with material that could have possibly fallen on its face otherwise, and hence I recommend this with little complaint to anyone looking for something good to add to their prog. collection.
So yeah...five stars and a big thumbs up from the Ant-man!

:::Review by Anteater:::

Jakko M Jakszyk - The Bruised Romantic Glee Club (2006)

CD 1

1. The Bruised Romantic Glee Club
2. Variations on a Theme by Holst
3. Catley's Ashes
4. When Peggy Came Home
5. Highgate Hill
6. Forgiving
7. No One Left to Lie To
8. The Things We Throw Away
9. Doxy, Dali and Duchamp
10. Srebrenica
11. When We Go Home

CD 2

1. As Long As He Lies Perfectly Still (incorporating: That Still and Perfect Summer - Astral Projection in Pinner)
2. Pictures of an Indian City
3. Nirvana for Mice
4. Islands
5. The Citizen King
6. Soon After

Credits
Jakko M. Jakszyk - vocals, electric and acoustic guitar, keyboards, mellotron, bass guitar, balalaika, sitar, flute, strings, whistles, sound effects, percussion, programming
Gavin Harrison - drums
Mel Collins - alto and tenor saxes, flute
Dave Stewart - keyboards (CD 1 - 9, CD 2 - 1, 3, 5)
Robert Fripp - soundscapes, electric guitars (CD 1 - 6, 11)
Danny Thompson - double bass (CD 1 - 9, CD 2 - 4)
Mark King - bass guitar (CD 1 -3)
Nathan King - bass guitar (CD 1 - 5)
John Giblin - bass guitar (CD 1 - 6)
Lyndon Connah - piano (CD 1 - 8)
Ian MacDonald - flute (CD 1 - 2)
Caroline Lavelle - cello (CD 1 - 2)
Helen Kaminga - viola (CD 1 - 2)
Clive Brooks - drums (CD 2 - 1)
Gary Barnacle - alto flute, flute, bass flute and piccolo, tenor and soprano saxes (CD 2 - 1)
Hugh Hopper - bass guitar (CD 1 - 1)
Pandit Dinesh - tabla, vocals (CD 2 - 2)
Ian Wallace - drums (CD 2 - 4)
Suzanne Barbieri - backing vocals (CD 1 - 11)
Django Jakszyk - voice (CD 1 - 11)
Camille Jakszyk - voice (CD 1 - 11)
Chris Baker - Irish priest (CD 1 - 4)

Maestro Trytony is a musical undertaking by Tomasz Gwincinski, a composer, improviser, guitarist, a leading personality of the "Music from Brain" scene based in Bydgoszcz, Poland. The idea of the "Music from Brain" production is its modern classical chamber music overtones in moder jazz area. Maestro Trytony album Enoptronia" is a turning point in the record collection of the scenes. This recording, inspired by jazz noncomformists (John Coltrane, Albert Ayler, Eric Dolphy, Ornette Coleman) as well as rock avant-garde composers (Fred Frith, Frank Zappa), combines improvisation with the modern classical form. Doing so, it retains the rock energy, improvisational freedom and wit, the idiosyncratic features of jazz. The recorded music flavors of the Polish soft romantic lyricism so characteristic in the works of Krzysztof Komeda. The quest star is Andrzej Przybielski, nestor of the Polish non-mainstream jazz.

:::Review by mozg.art.pl:::

Maestro Trytony - Heart Of Gold (2004)

1. O.R.G. (4:30)
2. Van Worden In Serra Morena (5:01)
3. Jocasta (11:24)
4. Snowboarding Alchemysta (5:12)
5. Heart Of Gold (5:26)
6. Tax Collector (0:47)
7. Magic Tiara Part 1 (7:27)
8. Magic Tiara Part 2 [Cherub. Wand.] (6:23)
9. Nanotechnology (4:39)
10. Epilogue (1:05)

Credits
Tomasz Gwinciński - guitar, electronics, leader
Tomasz Pawlicki - flute, keyboards, spinet, piano prepared
Patryk Węcławek - bass
Rafał Gorzycki – drums

Guests
Małgorzata Skotnicka - spinet
Jacek Majewski - percussion
Łukasz Gorewicz - violin
Martin Franken - gamelan

Wow! How one does not commit suicide after falling from the window on the fourth floor and realizing that he will never walk again. I think I have never heard such a personal album like this one and the Syd recordings do not come close as those were so sloppy. This is rather a healing job as the open wounds just start to cauterize , but as he says in the booklet of the remaster, he realized also that he would not have to write music according to his different band mates as it will be impossible to tour again especially with a band, so this would give him more artistic freedom in the writing dept. Everyone ot these tracks is an absolute gem and his voice has never been so fabulous. Nerve-wracking, hair-raising, flabbergasting, spine-tingling. But nevermind me, I'll let my trusted collabs talk about this album.

:::Review by Sean Trane:::

Robert Wyatt - Rock Bottom (1974)

1. Sea Song (6:31)
2. A Last Straw (5:46)
3. Little Red Riding Hood Hit the Road (7:38)
4. Alifib (6:55)
5. Alife (6:31)
6. Little Red Robin Hood Hit the Road (6:08)

Credits
- Robert Wyatt / vocals, keyboards, percussion, guitar
- Richard Sinclair / bass
- Hugh Hopper / bass
- Laurie Allan / drums

With

- Mongezi Feza / trumpet
- Ivor Cutler / voice, baritone concertina
- Gary Windo / bass clarinet, tenor saxophone
- Fred Frith / viola
- Mike Oldfield / guitar
- Alfreda Benge / voice

While most of the discussions of Frank Zappa have to do with his satirical and off-color lyrics, the fact remains that he was one of the finest and most underappreciated guitarists around. This collection places the spotlight squarely on Zappa's mastery of the guitar. Recorded for the most part in 1979 and 1980 (with a few tracks dating as far back as 1977), Shut Up 'n Play Yer Guitar is simply a collection of guitar solos. Even though most of the tracks were just edited out of their original song context, they fare well as stand-alone pieces, as Zappa was an ever-inventive player. Take, for example, the three versions of "Shut Up." These tracks were simply the guitar solos from "Inca Roads," but thanks to Zappa's ability for "instant composition," each version has its own complete story to tell, without ever being redundant. Other highlights are the reggae-tinged "Treacherous Cretins" and the beautiful "Pink Napkins." In addition to the electric guitar mangling contained on Shut Up 'n Play Yer Guitar, there are a couple of rare tracks that feature Zappa on acoustic guitar in a trio with Warren Cuccurullo on acoustic rhythm guitar and Vinnie Colaiuta on drums. In fact, special mention goes to Colaiuta for his polyrhythmic daring all over this album. All bandmembers play great throughout, but Colaiuta's playing is mind blowing. The album closes with another oddity: a gorgeous duet between Zappa on electric bouzouki and Jean-Luc Ponty on baritone violin. This is an album that should be heard by anyone who's into guitar playing. Highly recommended.

:::Review by Sean Westergaard:::

Frank Zappa - Shut Up 'n Play Yer Guitar (1981)

1. Five-Five-FIVE 2:31
2. Hog Heaven 2:44
3. Shut Up 'N Play Yer Guitar 5:30
4. While You Were Out 5:33
5. Treacherous Cretins 5:26
6. Heavy Duty Judy 4:35
7. Soup 'N Old Clothes 7:40

Credits
- Frank Zappa / lead guitar
+ Arthur Barrow / bass (1-2-3-5-6-7)
- Vinnie Colaiuta / drums
- Warren Cucurullo / rhythm guitar(1-3-4-5)
- Bob Harris / keyboards (2-6-7)
- Ed Mann / percussion (1-3-5)
- Tommy Mars / keyboards (1-2-3-5-6-7)
- Steve Vai / rhythm guitar (2-6-7)
- Denny Walley / rhythm guitar (1-3-5)
- Ray White / rhythm guitar (2-6-7)
- Ike Willis / rhythm guitar (1-2-3-5-6-7)
- Peter Wolf / keyboards (1-3-5)

Recorded in 1964 immediately after leaving the Miles Davis Quintet, Sam Rivers' Fuchsia Swing Song is one of the more auspicious debuts the label released in the mid-'60s. Rivers was a seasoned session player (his excellent work on Larry Young's Into Somethin' is a case in point) and a former member of Herb Pomeroy's Big Band before he went out with Davis. By the time of his debut, Rivers had been deep under the influence of Coltrane and Coleman, but wasn't willing to give up the blues just yet. Hence the sound on Fuchsia Swing Song is one of an artist who is at once very self-assured, and in transition. Using a rhythm section that included Tony Williams (whose Life Time he had guested on), pianist Jaki Byard, and bassist Ron Carter, Rivers took the hard bop and blues of his roots and poured them through the avant-garde colander. Today, players like Joshua Redman, Branford Marsalis, and James Carter do it all the time, but in 1964 it was unheard of. You either played hard bop or free; Davis' entire modal thing hadn't even completely blasted off yet. The title and opening track is a case in point. Rivers opens with an angular figure that is quickly translated by the band into sweeping, bopping blues. Rivers legato is lightning quick and his phrasing touches upon Coleman Hawkins, Sonny Rollins, Coleman, and Coltrane, but his embouchure is all his. He strikes the balance and then takes off on both sides of the aisle. Byard's comping is actually far more than that, building in rhythmic figures in striated minors just behind the tenor. "Downstairs Blues Upstairs" sounds, initially anyway, like it might have come out of the Davis book so deep is its blue root. But courtesy of Byard and Williams, Rivers goes to the left after only four choruses, moving onto the ledge a bit at a time, running knotty arpeggios through the center of the melody and increasingly bending his notes into succeeding intervals while shifting keys and times signatures. He never goes completely over the edge as he would on his later Blue Note dates. The most difficult cut on the date is "Luminous Monolith," with its swing-like figure introducing the melody. Eight bars in, the syncopation of the rhythm sections begins a stutter stem around the time and then the harmony with Byard building dense chords for Rivers to jump off of. On the Connoisseur Series CD (shame on Blue Note once again for making some of its best outside records "limited editions"; titles like this should be as readily available as Horace Silver's Song for My Father, but the label had been playing it ever so safe for a while and making fans buy the limited number of titles over and again) there are alternate takes of "Luminous Monolith" and three more of "Downstairs Blues Upstairs," making it a very worthwhile look at the entire session. This is a highly recommended date. Rivers never played quite like this again.

:::Review by Thom Jurek:::

Sam Rivers - Fuchsia Swing Song (1964) 

1. Fuchsia Swing Song 6:03 

2. Downstairs Blues Upstairs 5:33 

3. Cyclic Episode 6:56 

4. Luminous Monolith 6:30 

5. Beatrice 6:12 6   Ellipsis 7:42

Credits
Bass - Ron Carter
Drums - Anthony Williams
Piano - Jaki Byard
Saxophone [Tenor], Composed By - Sam Rivers

On this 1967 Impulse release, tenor saxophonist Archie Shepp unleashed his 18-minute tour de force "The Magic of Ju-Ju," combining free jazz tenor with steady frenetic African drumming. Shepp's emotional and fiery tenor takes off immediately, gradually morphing with the five percussionists -- Beaver Harris, Norman Connor, Ed Blackwell, Frank Charles, and Dennis Charles -- who perform on instruments including rhythm logs and talking drums. Shepp never loses the initial energy, moving forward like a man possessed as the drumming simultaneously builds into a fury. Upon the final three minutes, the trumpets of Martin Banks and Michael Zwerin make an abrupt brief appearance, apparently to ground the piece to a halt. This is one of Shepp's most chaotic yet rhythmically hypnotic pieces. The three remaining tracks, somewhat overshadowed by the title piece, are quick flourishes of free bop on "Shazam," "Sorry Bout That," and the slower, waltz-paced "You're What This Day Is All About."

:::Review by Al Campbell:::

Archie Shepp - The Magic Of Ju-Ju (1967)

1. The Magic Of Ju-Ju 18:34
2. You're What This Day Is All About 1:47
3. Shazam 4:43
4. Sorry 'Bout That 10:08

Credits
Bass - Reggie Workman
Drums - Beaver Harris , Norman Connor
Percussion - Dennis Charles
Percussion [Rhythm Logs] - Eddie Blackwell
Percussion [Talking Drums] - Frank Charles
Saxophone [Tenor], Written-by - Archie Shepp
Trumpet, Flugelhorn - Martin Banks
Trumpet, Trombone - Michael Zwerin

You Know the Number is another outstanding record from the Henry Threadgill Sextet. Over the course of six originals, Threadgill and the band fuse complex and spirited arrangements with incisive solo work. The material includes the calypso-inspired numbers "To Be Announced" and "Bermuda Blues" (one of Threadgill's most straightforward compositions), as well as the bittersweet ballad "Silver and Gold Baby, Silver and Gold." Other songs, like "Theme From Thomas Cole" and "Those Who Eat Cookies," feature the kind of buoyant, march-like rhythms and spastic, cartoon soundtrack horn arrangements Threadgill favored. Throughout the set, the band revels in some lively New Orleans-style unison playing and contributes excellent solos (special mention should go to trumpeter Rasul Saddik for his adept and blazing solos, and also to drummers Pheeroan Aklaff and Reggie Nicholson for their propulsive and tight rhythmic support). As usual, Threadgill's solos include an intriguing mix of dark pathos and intensity, while bassist Fred Hopkins and trombonist Frank Lacy follow suit with intriguing contributions of their own. This title is a must for Threadgill fans and also worthwhile for those interested in the experimental side of jazz.

:::Review by Stephen Cook:::

Henry Threadgill - You Know The Number (1986)

1. Bermuda Blues 9:26
2. Silver And Gold Baby, Silver And Gold 5:45
3. Theme From Thomas Cole 6:39
4. Good Times 6:33
5. To Be Announced 6:27
6. Paille Street 4:26
7. Those Who Eat Cookies 6:16

Credits
Bass - Fred Hopkins
Cello - Diedre Murray
Percussion [Left] - Pheeroan Aklaff
Percussion [Right] - Reggie Nicholson
Saxophone [Alto, Tenor], Flute [Bass] - Henry Threadgill
Trombone - Frank Lacy
Trumpet - Rasul Sadik

Notes
Recorded directly to two-track digital tape at Uptown Chelsea Sound, NYC, October 12 and 13, 1986.
Note that track 6 does not appear on the LP.

Tales of Captain Black first appeared in 1978 on the Artist House label in America. It was a label set up for the purpose of allowing visionary artists to do exactly what they wanted to do. They had issued a couple of records by Ornette Coleman previously, so it only made sense to issue one by his then guitarist, James Blood Ulmer. With Coleman on alto, his son Denardo Coleman on drums, and bassist Jamaladeen Tacuma on bass, Ornette's harmolodic theory of musical composition and improvisation (whereby on a scale of whole tones, every person in the ensemble could solo at one time and stay in this new harmony) was going to get its first test outside of his own recordings. Blood was, before he was a jazz player, a funk guitarist who had tenured with Black Nasty and a side project of George Clinton's in Detroit, as well as playing as a sideman to organ groovemaster Big John Patton. Having an ally in Tacuma, Ulmer brought funk deep into free jazz territory. The disc opens with "Theme From Captain Black," a furious exercise on the interplay between Ulmer and Tacuma's root contribution. Ulmer sounds like a sideways Jimi Hendrix driving home the rhythmic riff from "Voodoo Chile" as Tacuma charges toward Denardo to undercut the time and Coleman soars over the top. But we also hear Ulmer slipping his fills in, faster than lightning, always in the cut and rolling those strings out like a sax player. On "Moon Shine," we hear the blues angle of harmolodics assert itself. Long, repetitive melody lines are played between Coleman and Blood; there's a modal feel, but it's subverted by the lack of flats. Blood augments all his chords to be played as drone-like as possible, so then even though the piece appears to be played in a minor key, after the first two measures it makes no difference because everyone is soling, not along a set of changes but a melodic line introduced at the beginning. Here is where Blood shines. His fiery arpeggios cut across the bass and rhythm lines and become their own tempo while never leaving the ensemble. The melody restates itself only often enough for the microtonal alignment between Coleman and Blood to become apparent.
They are playing in different keys, and through different modal inventions, but sound in unison. On "Revelation March," which Blood recorded on Are You Glad to Be in America, is indicative of the complexities of harmolodics; it also offers a glimpse of this music out from under Coleman's tutelage. The previous melodies were all from Coleman's fake book. Here, Blood introduces the anarchy he's interested in, allowing fragmentary ideas to assert themselves as the sole reason to engage in group improvisation. Tacuma and Denardo are more than up to the challenge. Tacuma trades single lines with Blood's triple-timed fours and chords, creating a kind of melodic invention on the fly. Denardo treats the tune as if it were a march in hyperspeed. Only Coleman dares to play his loping, easy, graceful pace, blues -- wailing it above the chaos. It's beautiful. Safe to say, there are no weak tracks on Tales From Captain Black, and even the redo of "Revealing" from Ulmer's previous album show an unbridled excitement and an extrapolation of that tune's rhythmic and harmonic elements into something more sinister, more driven, more angular, more mercurial. Captain Black marks the real beginning of Ulmer's career as a leader. It has been a bumpy, restless ride since that time with many creative and professional ups and downs, but it hardly matters. Records like this one make him the most visionary and brilliant electric guitarist in a generation.

:::Review by Thom Jurek:::

James Blood Ulmer - Tales of Captain Black (1978)

1. Theme From Captain Black 3:14
2. Moons Shine 3:52
3. Morning Bride 4:57
4. Revelation March 4:32
5. Woman Coming 3:38
6. Nothing To Say 4:13
7. Arena 4:24
8. Revealing 4:42

Credits
Drums - Denardo Coleman
Electric Bass - Jamaaladeen Tacuma
Guitar, Music By - James Blood Ulmer
Saxophone [Alto] - Ornette Coleman

When Tomasz Stanko first started working with a trio of Polish teenagers in 1994 -- Marcin Wasilewski, piano; Slawomir Kurkiewicz, bass; Michal Miskiewicz, drums -- on film projects and live gigs inside his native land, he might have glimpsed, but surely never fully conceived of, the sound that the quartet's relationship would offer a decade later. Suspended Night, on ECM, follows the hugely successful Soul of Things on the same label. It is only the second international offering from this group, but the flowering and maturation of this creative relationship are nothing if not utterly stunning. This ensemble has developed its own bravely compelling yet tonally accessible voice in articulating Stanko's unique compositional language; it is one that opens up the jazz tradition from the inside in startling and wonderful new directions. Suspended Night opens with "Song for Sarah," a ballad that stresses the harmonic language utilized so wonderfully on Soul of Things. Wasilewski's intensely lyrical, Bill Evans-influenced style is the perfect complement to the languid tempo and moving melody of Stanko's balladic utterance. Stanko's playing of the melody moves directly in concert with his pianist's chromatic subtleties, with unhurried, emotional nuance as the rhythm section punctuates his lines with shimmering, dancing colorations and whispers. The rest of the disc is made up of ten "Suspended Variations." They are compositions that offer enough skeletal direction and structure to allow a spacious inner freedom; improvisation feels effortless, innovative in terms of dynamic, tone, and harmonic invention as an exploration of tonal color is combined with space and melodic inquiry that is holistic and open-ended. The dynamic range here is also compelling as it seems to flow and extend rather than explode for the sake of releasing tensions. Where Soul of Things concentrated on intimate dialogue, Suspended Night uses that exchange and extends both subtleties and vagaries while keeping the major tenets of its subject in full view, always with grace and a poetic elegance. This a major new lyric statement that actually looks at jazz as a future music of unfolding investigation rather than as merely a historic tradition celebrating itself. Suspended Night is essential for any serious jazz fan and a wonderful introduction to Stanko's music as well.

Tomasz Stańko Quartet - Suspended Night (2004)

1.Song For Sarah 5:30
2. Suspended Variation I 8:52
3. Suspended Variation II 8:24
4. Suspended Variation III 7:13
5. Suspended Variation IV 7:04
6. Suspended Variation V 4:20
7. Suspended Variation VI 8:54
8. Suspended Variation VII 3:25
9. Suspended Variation VIII 4:21
10. Suspended Variation IX 5:52
11. Suspended Variation X 4:47

Credits
Double Bass - Sławomir Kurkiewicz
Drums - Michał Miśkiewicz
Piano - Marcin Wasilewski
Trumpet - Tomasz Stańko

Trevor Dunn's Trio-Convulsant is back for their second album, although with a completely different lineup (besides Dunn, of course). Adam Levy and Kenny Wollesen are gone, replaced by Mary Halvorson on guitar and Ches Smith on drums. The music they play is not so much a fusion of styles as it is a collision of styles. Almost straight-ahead jazz noodling gives way to hardcore blasts and crunching power chords, then completely devolves into Derek Bailey territory, but the band is always together. You can tell that some of it is quite composed, and that other sections are most likely entirely improvised. Dunn plays acoustic bass throughout ("Me Susurra un Secreto" is actually a bass solo), while Halvorson is all over the map sonically, switching between clean and distorted tones, chords, single-string runs, and extended techniques. She also judiciously uses some kind of delay or pitch-bending device to wonderful effect. The tunes are challenging but aren't difficult to listen to, and their cover of Duke Ellington's "The Single Petal of a Rose" (with guest harpist Shelley Burgon) is actually quite pretty. If you've been following Trevor Dunn's widely varied career as a player, you know he's got a sense of adventure, and Sister Phantom Owl Fish will not disappoint.

:::Review by Dave Lynch:::

Trevor Dunn's Trio Convulsant - Sister Phantom Owl Fish (2004)

1. Liver-Colored Dew 6:00
2. The Empty Glass Has A Name 4:42
3. Specter Of Serling 6:12
4. Me Susurra Un Secreto 1:45
5. Dawn's Early Vengeance 5:41
6. The Single Petal Of A Rose 6:32

Harp - Shelley Burgon
Written-By - Strayhorn , Ellington

7. The Salamander 6:08
8. She Ossifies 8:24
9. Styrofoam & Grief 6:41
10. I'm Sick 2:50
Written-By - Andre Previn

11. Untitled 1:00

Credits
Bass, written-By  - Trevor Dunn
Drums - Ches Smith
Guitar - Mary Halvorson

William Parker continues to churn out CDs on a pace that might rival Steve Lacy, Satoko Fujii, or David Murray's epic proportions. While each project reaches ever higher levels, this recording from the twelfth annual Vision Festival in New York City might be close to his zenith. Three long compositions allow his some 16-piece band of horns, woodwinds, and strings to not only cut loose with potent solos as you would expect, but exist as a single crystalline entity with multiple and equal facets of ethnic, improvisational, and modern compositional forms. The music is as stunning as any Parker has devised in his career, but there are some caveats. For one, Parker plays no acoustic upright bass, leaving that to Shayne Dulberger. The oud of Brahim Frigbane and electric guitar of Joe Morris adds a lean and sparse element. But the music is generally broad ranging, expansive, and layered, thanks to the immense talents of accomplished modernists like trumpeter Lewis Barnes, alto saxophonist Rob Brown, tenor saxophonist and clarinetist Sabir Mateen, violinist Jason Kao Hwang, Jessica Pavone on the viola, and twin drummers Gerald Cleaver and Hamid Drake. Of the three long pieces, "Lights of Lake George" is a true magnum opus. A 7/8 modal bassline joins the dancing baritone of David Sewelson and Frigbane's oud, then the wordless East Indian vocals of Sangeeta Bandyopadhyay make way for string solos from the brilliant Hwang and Pavone, the burnished trumpet of Barnes, the shenai or musette of Cole and Parker, and clarinet of Mateen. The piece is not so much about improvisation as the consistent symmetry and balance from the entire band throughout weaving intricate colors. The double reeds open on the 4/4 "Neptune's Mirror," as the distinct and jangly guitar of Morris takes over, Sewelson leads horn punctuations with a cello aside by Shiau-She Yu, then cello and oud. The piece has an eerie yet earthy feel as all strings chime in, and Bandyopadhyay recites a poem of enlightenment, while reminding us of either loved or allegedly hated humans who have passed that "we can not bring them back to life." The opener "Morning Mantra" is a modal ostinato bass and drums riff with a quick guitar from Morris under long tones from the ensemble dominated by the high-pitched double reeds in a universal tonality, with Bandyopadhyay again poetically waxing on the wind, light, and life over a multilayered framework of dense tones, themes and world-wide excursions. One who listens closely, and more than once, will reap great rewards from this, another excellent document in the growing and substantive discography of the consistently forward thinking Parker.

:::Review by Michael G. Nastos:::

William Parker - Double Sunrise Over Neptune (2008)

1. Morning Mantra 15:08
2. Lights Of Lake George 27:18
3. O'Neals Bridge 0:37
4. Neptune's Mirror 22:39

Credits
Bass - Shayna Dulberger
Cello - Shiau-Shu Yu
Drums - Gerald Cleaver , Hamid Drake
Guitar, Banjo - Joe Morris
Oud - Brahim Frigbane
Reeds [Double] - Bill Cole
Reeds [Double], Performer [Doson'ngoni], Conductor, Written-by, Producer - William Parker
Saxophone [Alto] - Rob Brown
Saxophone [Baritone] - Dave Sewelson
Saxophone [Tenor], Clarinet - Sabir Mateen
Trumpet - Lewis Barnes
Viola - Jessica Pavone
Violin - Jason Kao Hwang , Mazz Swift
Voice - Sangeeta Bandyopadhyay

Led Bib are explosive enough to blow up your speakers -- after they've done a number on their own speakers, that is. The British quintet plays hot-wired electric jazz-rock with two alto saxes wailing over (usually) electric keys and bass plus no-nonsense drums -- and, incidentally, drummer Mark Holub composes nearly all the band's material. Those saxes, belonging to Chris Williams and Pete Grogan and nicely positioned in the stereo field, are practically mirror images, matched in tone and intensity as they pair up in harmony, echo each other in counterpoint, or democratically divide up the soloing space. There's a '90s New York downtown feel to their tone, phrasing, and interplay, recalling in particular the two altos of Ned Rothenberg and Thomas Chapin in Rothenberg's funked-up Double Band releases on the Moers label. Yet Liran Donin's fuzzy rattling bass and Toby McLaren's burning Fender Rhodes truly differentiate this group from the pack -- it sometimes seems like Donin in particular has decided that nothing could possibly elevate the proceedings more than playing through a demolished speaker, and McLaren makes the overdriven sound of Miles Davis' fusion-era electric keyboardists seem like George Winston. The opening moments of "Yes, Again" waltz darkly, offering few clues of what's around the corner: the brief assault of an angular theme followed by a squeaky buzzing and pounding blast of ear-shredding keyboard and bass driven by rock-solid rhythms underpinning those siren-wailing saxes. Tempos shift, constrict, and loosen as the band uncoils, only to tighten back into the theme and stop on a dime just as your neighbors shout at you to turn the stereo down. The playful two-note sax blurt beginning "Squirrel Carnage" is joined by the rest of the band's clipped phrases and fractured rhythms, suddenly overtaken by that thick fuzz bass nd Rhodes as the energy builds and McLaren unleashes a frantic solo followed by squalling saxophone and an abrupt tumble onto a free-form plateau. Led Bib are not afraid to abandon the rhythm, as they do for a short spell here, but they also relish bringing everything back together, assembling compositional puzzle pieces and ratcheting the energy level up, slamming into a tightly focused finale. 

In contrast, the comparatively gentle opening to "Early Morning" could soundtrack the first stirrings of wakefulness after the sun has arisen; there is space enough to slowly gather one's bearings. The sax harmonies are lovely over understated accompaniment before the keys' downward progression and rolling drums bring unsettling portents, and the saxophone burns increasingly hotter over a spacious slow vamp to the point of explosion -- there is calm again at the conclusion, but this particular morning has ultimately entailed more than a relaxed breakfast in bed with a croissant and juice. The squelchy keyboard voicings accenting "Sweet Chilli" nearly mimic the sound of a squeegee on a car window, while "2.4:1 (Still Equals None)" slows to a crawl and then stealthily tiptoes through episodic stops and starts with fittingly spooky and spacy electronics in homage to BBC Radiophonic Workshop explorer Delia Derbyshire, while the album's most accessibly tuneful and uptempo moment arrives with Grogan and Williams' tight harmonies on the theme to "Call Centre Labyrinth." Led Bib let their pent-up energies loose with particular drama on album highlight "Water Shortage," which achieves nearly cinematic proportions as McLaren spins through cleanly articulated keyboard runs -- with acoustic piano voicings this time around. And the nine-plus-minute "Zone 4," written by Williams, is an ambitious closer, with its nearly martial rhythm and angular themes ultimately building through the customary explosiveness to a stirring finale with heartfelt playing by the saxophonists, aiming for the heavens as the drums roll and bass and keys swell beneath them. Yes, Led Bib can certainly bring the skronk, but on "Zone 4" they also bring heart and soul.

:::Review by Dave Lynch:::

Led Bib - Sensible Shoes (2009)

1. Yes, Again (4:55)
2. Squirrel Carnage (7:10)
3. Early Morning (7:10)
4. Sweet Chili (5:22)
5. 2.4:1 (still equals none) (5:56)
6. Call Centre Labyrinth (7:00)
7. Water Shortage (7:11)
8. Flat Pack Fantasy (4:49)
9. Zone 4 (9:07)

Credits
- Mark Holub / drums
- Liran Donin / Stand up bass, electric bass
- Tony McLaren / Rhodes piano
- Chris Williams / saxophone
- Pete Grogan / saxophone