The Matthew Shipp Trio, with pianist Shipp, bassist Michael Bisio and drummer Newman Taylor Baker, first recorded in 2015, with The Conduct of Jazz on the Thirsty Ear label. Since then, three more CDs as a trio have appeared, and they’ve also recorded with saxophonist Rich Halley (on Terra Incognita and The Shape Of Things, both on Halley’s Pine Eagle imprint) and with flutist Nicole Mitchell (All Things Are on Rogue Art). The latest trio release is the magnificent World Construct, where this unit’s power, delicacy, and sublimely interactive approach to Shipp’s compositions are deftly and constructively balanced. The eleven tunes range in length from under two minutes to over ten minutes. Some pieces, like the brief opening track, Tangible, hint at the blues. The meditative Sustained Construct, a solo piano piece, continues with a late-night bluesy feeling, but considerably more abstract. With Spine, we move into even freer territory, with assertive bass by Bisio and careful commentary by Baker. Shipp and Bisio spend most of the four minutes provoking one another in an extended dialogue. The tempo of Jazz Posture is pretty fast, with Shipp working across the full range of the piano as he unleashes long convoluted lines. Fast fingers from Bisio and a liberated Baker drive him along and keep the momentum going when the piano drops out for a spell. Beyond Understanding is both simple and mysterious, with Baker’s cymbals and Bisio’s deep tones hovering around Shipp’s skeletal melodies. The slightly meandering free movement of Talk Power is rather lovely, a carefully caressed melody with rhapsodic bass and minimalist drumming. At three and a half minutes, the music is a prime example of the taut constraint of the trio’s interactivity and their essentially ego-less unity of intent. It doesn’t surprise me that this revelation comes at the midpoint of this carefully sequenced disc, which juxtaposes changes in tempo to achieve an emotional arc to the full hour. Talk Power is followed by the explosive Abandoned, with an attack that’s strong enough to blow you out of your seat even if you’re expecting it. The band’s triologue continues with the less-fearsome A Mysterious State, with both Shipp on piano and Baker mostly on snare drum getting downright obsessive as Bisio’s bass dances all around them. Stop the World, not at all an unusual sentiment in this turbulent era, is a somber dialogue for piano and bass, with Bisio playing a powerfully heartfelt solo against Shipp’s sparse chording. Sly Glance is funky and in the pocket, which comes as a bit of surprise this late in the program, but definitely a welcome interlude. It tells me that they’re still having some fun with the music, even in the middle of a pandemic. The finale is the title track, and the longest piece. It opens with Shipp alone at the piano in a classical vein, and soon joined by Bisio and then Baker to embark on a deeply engrossing extended musical conversation. This driving upbeat number features Baker’s spectacular brushwork, Bisio’s patient throb, and Shipp’s endlessly flowing lines. World Construct is an instant classic, and very highly recommended.
ESP-Disk ESP 5059; Matthew Shipp (p) Michael Bisio (b) Newman Taylor Baker (d); Brooklyn, NY, April 15, 2021; Tangible/ Sustained Construct/ Spine/ Jazz Posture/ Beyond Understanding/ Talk Power/ Abandoned/ A Mysterious State/ Stop the World/ Sly Glance/ World Construct; 58:12. www.espdisk.com
No comments:
Post a Comment