Wadada Leo Smith: Constellations And Hemispheres

     The pieces on Constellations And Hemispheres, the latest communiqué from trumpeter and composer Wadada Leo Smith, are drawn from various sessions recorded over a five year period. Four different ensembles are represented, with plenty of overlapping personnel. Smith’s echo-laden trumpet floats over the top, like a visitation from another sound world. His drifting pieces strike me as spiritual exercises lightly disguised as extended meditations in sound. Most of the time, the focus is on Smith’s endlessly expressive trumpet, but there are sections for some of his associates to come to the fore. Pianist Sylvie Courvoisier, whose bold playing bolster Dark Energy, has collaborated with Smith a few times, notably with 2024's Angel Falls, a duet project. Most of the other musicians, notably drummer Pheeroan akLaff, have worked with Smith on a variety of projects, and it’s a special pleasure to hear vibraphonist Bobby Naughton back on record after a long absence. Deep Canyons on Mars, starting out with the wildly distorted electric basses of Bill Laswell and Melvin Gibbs, changes abruptly at the five-minute mark as akLaff’s cymbals and Naughton’s gentle vibraphone strikes usher in some hard blowing by Smith. For Meditation on Love, Smith plays without any echo, just his raw trumpet sound leading Naughton, akLaff, Lamar Smith on electric guitar, and a pair of percussionists. All in all, a fascinating compilation from the immensely talented octogenarian, well worth hearing. 

Burning Ambulance; Wadada Leo Smith (tpt) with Diamonds* (Sylvie Courvoisier, p; Marcus Gilmore, d), Nda Kultur# (Bobby Naughton, vib; Lamar Smith, el g; Mauro Refosco, Brian Jarawa Gray, perc; Pheeroan akLaff, d), Blue Dreams+ (Nda Kultur band plus Bill Laswell, Melvin Gibbs, el b), Springtime 5@ (Naughton, Laswell, Gibbs, akLaff); New Haven, CT, 2017-2022; Dark Energy*/ Lake Tanganyika#/ Dark Matter, Particles of Light, Mirror of the Unseen*/ Deep Canyons on Mars@/ Meditation on Love#; 59:13. burningambulancemusic.bandcamp.com