Bill Frisell, Andrew Cyrille and Kit Downes
Breaking The Shell
*** out of *****
The trio of Bill Frisell, Andrew Cyrille and Kit Downes came together to record Breaking The Shell for Red Hook Records, at the historic St. Luke's In The Fields church in New York City's Greenwich Village. This unique setting inspired the artists, as did the church's large pipe organ. The resulting experimental jazz album, hums, buzz's and bang's as the avantgarde playing from the trio reverberates off the historic walls.
Frisell's guitar acts more as support throughout the record with Downes organ work begin more of a lead while Cyrille's drums either push songs forward with energy or just accent the sounds like on "May 4th" that just squeaks and squawks, opening the album on spare note.The trio begins to swell with "Untitled 23" as the drums push things a bit more as the pipe organ exhales then recedes. "Kasei Valles" displays ominous tension as the buzzing increases with horror movie like foreboding. The back to back tracks of "Southern Body" and "Sjung Herte Sjung" pair wonderfully together as "Southern Body" feels dream like, with the pipe organ mimicking a flute, while the whole effort stutters and stops before "Sjung Herte Sjung" feels like waking up, as the drums become more active and Frisell and Downes increase their playing, implying the beginning of a chaotic day in the big city.
The clear highpoint on the Breaking The Shell is the majestic "El". The track uses plucking from Frisell and light drumming to start, but also introduces Lucy Railton's cello to the mix and the results are excellent. The drums start to skitter as the instrumentation rises beautifully. It is a shame the full album doesn't capture this quartet as Railton is an excellent addition to the trio's sound.
The b-side of the album is softer with shorter, more contemplative efforts like "July 2nd" and the exhaling Proximity" as the trio close their sonic adventure with "Este a Székelyeknél" as the pipe organ sounds again like woodwinds flowing through the old church.
Fans of more straight ahead music may be put off, but this capturing of inventive sounds on Breaking The Shell from Bill Frisell, Andrew Cyrille and Kit Downes is an interesting listen for those looking for unique sonic perspectives.
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