Search - Evan Parker :: Eleventh Hour

EP's EAE live in Glasgow

R. Hutchinson | a world ruled by fossil fuels and fossil minds | 11/05/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Like MEMORY/VISION (see my review), THE ELEVENTH HOUR is a live recording, this time from the Center for Contemporary Arts in Glasgow in November 2004, part of the concert series Free RadiCCAls 2004. The EAE keeps growing -- starting with 6 (3 acoustic players and 3 electronic/computer processors), it is now up to 11 with the addition of Richard Barrett and Paul Obermayer since MEMORY/VISION. Barry Guy is missing for the first time, replaced by Adam Linson on double-bass, so the acoustic players are now 5 -- Evan Parker on soprano sax, Philipp Wachsmann on violin, Paul Lytton on percussion, Agusti Fernandez on piano, and Linson on bass. There are now 6 players on the "electro" side, plus Wachsmann and Lytton doing double-duty for a total of 8.



The disc opens with "Shadow Play" (17'29"), a solo piece for Parker with Casserly, Ryan and Prati adding electronic processing. "The Eleventh Hour" (about 64') has 5 parts, and like MEMORY/VISION has several sections featuring one of the acoustic players. Part 1 features Wachsmann's violin, Part 2 features Lytton's percussion, Part 3 features Fernandez's piano, Part 4 finally includes a feature for Parker's sax toward the end, part of which is a slow, lovely, lyrical solo that you would never guess was Evan Parker in a blind sound test, and Part 5 is nearly all electronic, a very effective pulsating sphere of sound based largely on low piano notes and high keening sax notes.



There are now four EP/EAE albums, the first two recorded in the studio (TOWARD THE MARGINS and DRAWN INWARD -- see my reviews) and the most recent two recorded live. Separated by a several year gap, the recent pair has developed a somewhat different, more contemplative sound than the more forceful earlier pair. THE ELEVENTH HOUR is the most ECM-ish sounding yet, slower and more spacious, more lyrical in places, with more crystalline solo lines from the acoustic instruments. I recommend DRAWN INWARD as the best if you're only going to hear one of these fine recordings, but they're all superb.



The liner notes are incredibly sparse, basically just three photos and the list of players, but there are some informative notes on the ECM site that should have been included in the booklet."