Studio Live: Birds and Blades

Album review

In 2002, the rage for free expression was readily apparent in this pair of gigs between bassist Barry Guy and saxophonist Evan Parker. Made of up two discs, this set represents two days' work by the duo. The first is a studio date under Guy's mantle, on which the pair engage in seven wildly different improvisations. As Guy's sense of situation and tension is one of the very best in the world, he opens up a road for Parker tonally and dynamically. Using his fingers, a bow, his palms, and anything else at his disposal, Guy charges into a kind of tonal inquiry that requires force. Parker, on soprano, takes the rough stuff and runs with it. On the latter disc, the duo plays live and the four improvs here are left by Parker, who plays both tenor and soprano. These pieces are a bit more speculative in origin, but quickly get to the place where the fire meets the sky. This is an exhilarating pair that, together, practices a kind of poetry of the infinite in their explorations. Far from difficult to listen to; if anything, this is so compelling one will want to repeat it.

© Thom Jurek /TiVo