Having garnered some of the most excited reviews of his career with last year’s trio record New Concepts in Piano Jazz, maverick pianist Matthew Shipp pivots to his other most well-known concept: an improvised solo record. Unlike, say, Keith Jarrett, Shipp prefers to record in the studio, and avoids being (overtly) influenced by piano lessons or classical training. If anything except his own shimmering imagination rules The Cosmic Piano, it’s the twin towers of Cecil Taylor and the blues.
Like Taylor, Shipp wanders all over the keyboard to seemingly directionless purpose; also like the avant-garde piano demon, deep listening reveals a method to the mania. Unlike Taylor, Shipp doesn’t try to dismantle the keyboard with hurricane speed – indeed, if anything Shipp…
Tag Archive: Matthew Shipp
The association of saxophonist Ivo Perelman and pianist Matthew Shipp spans three decades and continues to yield fresh results. On their latest effort, Armageddon Flower, the two industrious artists match wits with expert string players: violist Mat Maneri and bassist William Parker. The quartet takes full advantage of their instruments’ range and timbres, embracing nonlinear structures that make the music feel both through-composed and spontaneously conceived.
Their free styling remains compelling, emotionally stirring, and artistically inspired — enough to keep listeners’ ears wide open throughout a session that opens with dark textures, despite the uplifting title “Pillar of Light”. It’s difficult to discern whether Perelman’s saxophone is…