By Frank Alkyer | Published November 2016
Andrew Cyrille and his bandmates make their intentions clear from the get–go of this wonderful new recording on ECM. This is an unabashed exploration into time, pulse, space and atmosphere. The 76–year–old drummer begins this “declaration” from the opening staccato beats of “Coltrane Time” with a torn military cadence that bubbles beneath the wails, swoops and groans of Bill Frisell’s guitar. Richard Teitelbaum dances over his mad–hatter synths while Ben Street offers just the right notes on bass. This quartet proves that less is more, leaving plenty of room for each other and the music to breathe. Frisell’s “Kaddish” is a beautiful prayer of quiet and solitude. He carefully paces each note, while Cyrille rumbles in the background, conveying a sense of distant power. On “Dazzling (Perchordially Yours),” Cyrille races, glides and dives through his kit. Stories are told swiftly as a group, and just as quickly stopped to leave time for them to sink in. Teitelbaum washes sound playfully back and forth on the speakers, and Street delivers an avant call–and–response sermon from his bass. The closing number, Frisell’s “Song For Andrew No. 1,” offers the best example of where this Cyrille and his quartet are heading. The drummer whips, rapid–fire, across the kit, and Frisell’s guitar sings slow and steady against the groove. Teitelbaum and Street each find just the right spots to create tension and release. The resulting music is ambitious yet simple, rich yet stripped–down, challenging yet infinitely satisfying.
