Item Description

The album opens with the Sunny Murray miniature “Jiblet“, a powerful introduction to the following tracks, which are a mixture of cover versions and Daniel’s own compositions. And there are a lot of characteristics the pieces have in common. “Innerconnection“ by Dewey Redman and “Congeniality“, an Ornette Coleman tune, live from the excellent horn interaction: tightly intervowen ferocious runs, polyphonic mayhem, the opposition of the saxes crying and honking and the trumpet’s smooth and elegant tone.

The highlight of the album is the band’s version of Albert Ayler’s “Ghosts”. In contrast to the original, the band hides the theme behind collective improvisation, only here and there it shines through. In the beginning it’s the trumpet that tries to establish Ayler’s march-like melody against the saxophones, winning them slowly over. The band emphasizes the tune’s call-and-response and gospel roots and only after five minutes the frontline plays the theme in unison, which makes it stand out all the more powerful, it’s literally swelling in front of Nakamura’s driving rhythms. From then on the horns process the tune in an exciting and powerful way.

Actually, the music on this album is a must-have for fans of classic free jazz. The only weak point is the fact that Pierce’s bass can only be properly heard once the ensemble passages turn down the volume, for example in “The Probe“ (a Ted Daniel composition), where he proves what an imaginative and creative player he is. His repetitive pulse opens the track, then the complete band presents the main theme, before Lake takes over for a long, reflective alto meditation full of intense dynamics (especially the restrained overtones, the shivering, compressed tones, and the imaginative modulations of the theme are really awesome).

Ted Daniel – trumpet, flugelhorn, French hunting horn, Moroccan bugle
Daniel Carter – tenor saxophone
Oliver Lake – alto saxophone, soprano saxophone, piccolo, cow bell
Richard Pierce – bass
Tatsuya Nakamura – drums, quarter drums

SIDE A
INNERCONNECTION

SIDE B
1. JIBLET
2. GHOSTS

SIDE C
1. ENTERING
2. CONGENIALITY

SIDE D
1. THE PROBE
2. PAGAN SPAIN