The quartet of Jason Stein, Marilyn Crispell, Damon Smith & Adam Shead is exuberant and boldly exciting on spi-raling horn. Drummer Shead is the least experienced member of the band, but he fits in beautifully, rising to the occasion with grit and rambunctious flair. Stead and the widely acclaimed bass clarinet specialist Stein had met in the recording studio before, on their 2020 duo session Synaptic Atlas. Pianist Crispell needs no introduction to anyone with a passing interest in modern piano stylists. Bassist Smith, whose Balance Point Acoustics label has several decades of releases to be proud of, has performed in free settings with such figures as John Butcher, Henry Kaiser, Frank Gratkowski, and Peter Kowald. The recording details for this date have the notation that “This is the entire studio session in the order in which it was played,” a rarity even in the realm of freely improvised music. The power and spirited interaction of these players is a testament to their distinctive individual sounds and their willingness to give utmost priority to the music of the collective. Picking favorite selections in a session like this one is a fool’s errand. Suffice to say that there are plenty of enticingly elegant and inventive passages in these instant compositions. Heartily recommended.
Balance Point Acoustics bpaltd20020/Irritable Mystic Records IMR003; Jason Stein (bcl) Marilyn Crispell p) Damon Smith (b) Adam Shead (d); Chicago, IL, June 19, 2023; a song paid by singing/ a universe of otherwise/ the ground laid open/ saturant moon water/ so close it cut my ribs/ back and back out/ a rusted bell’s clank; 62:18. balancepointacoustics.com
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