[AUM005] - CD in classic jewelcase (white tray) with 4-panel insert
Whit Dickey: drums, compositions
Rob Brown: alto sax, flute
Chris Lightcap: bass
This is Whit Dickey's first album as a leader. In 1996, Whit parted ways with the stunning groups of both David S. Ware and Matthew Shipp, of which he was full part and parcel for a number of years. After a period of reassessment, Whit was inspired anew by aligning himself with his burgeoning compositional urges. At the very beginning of 1998, armed with an album's worth of freshly formed pieces, he went into the studio with long-time associate Rob Brown and then relative new-comer to the scene, Chris Lightcap [this is Lightcap's first appearance on record!].
A tremendous debut! The tunes are fleshed into their final form with extremely giving performances by all. Dickey's addictive sense of time is ON, and his dancerly touch up top of the kit is wholly meshed with his full-bodied low end drive. Brown – one of any generation's most gifted alto sax improvisors – burns like an anxious mofo when he is driven, and he is burning all through this album. Young Lightcap on bass fully proved himself worthy of this company at the time, and has continued to do so (also check him on Joe Morris Quartet's A Cloud Of Black Birds). Man, I love trios. And =this= is a great trio album!
"#3 Cadence Readers Poll of 1998"
"From start to finish a free-jazz masterpiece." –Joe S. Harrington, New York Press
"A masterpiece of an album. The members of the trio are obviously well aware of the stylistic tendencies of each other and perform accordingly with fantastic solo and ensemble playing throughout." –Bryan Cook, Lamppost 40
"From the first strains of this powerhouse recording, it is clear that it is a drummer-led date. It has nothing to do with the mix, which cleanly balances the three voices, nor is it because the drums monopolize the spotlight. Instead, there is a sense that this music grows from the rhythms up. This music is built around a free-flowing open pulse, extended through simple melodic kernels and light, dancing phrasing. [The album] masterfully balances roiling energy and free interplay with taut collective empathy." –Michael Rosenstein, Cadence
1. Planet One - 04:50
2. Penumbra - 06:19
3. Transonic - 09:17
4. Second Skin - 08:02
5. Volleys - 05:45
6. Tableau - 05:11
7. Kinesis - 03:36
8. Skyhook - 09:37
Produced by Whit Dickey and Steven Joerg
Recorded on January 17; Mixed and Mastered on January 23, 1998
at Systems Two Studio, Brooklyn. Engineer: Michael Marciano.
Cover light painting & design by Ming@409