Search - Matthew (Trio) Shipp :: Multiplication Table

A view into the mind of a composer/improviser at work.

Adolph Pinelad | Montreal, Quebec Canada | 03/22/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

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Personnel:



Matthew Shipp: Piano (composer)

Susie Ibarra: Drums

William Parker: Bass



In this magnificent set you can actually witness the process of composition broken down into abstract expressionistic motifs. Shipp's playing is definitely intense and profoundly cerebral. It ties in jazz elements and modern classical elements -an almost Scriabinesque musicality- into his musical explorations.



The polyphonic work is mesmerizing, not only due to Ibarra's drumming, but thanks to the trio's playing as a whole. A great moment on this album comes when Shipp is re-harmonizing Ellington's C Jam blues, making it ever more complex and expressionistic, and there is an incredibly succinct pause, and then the trio blasts in, creating a polyphonic tapestry that sounds like furious wings of a giant condor flapping.



Parker is, as usual, a driving force. His bass playing lifts, twists and beats against t other musicians layers and clusters, creating an aural experience that will leave the listener marked and gasping for air.



It must be clear that this is an album where modern, cerebral jazz and modern creative elements more attuned to contemporary classical musings meet to create a rare an original hybrid. But this hybrid is definitely a voice of our times, albeit a more intellectual one. Don't expect any kind of smooth, foot-tapping, finger-snapping moments. For adventurous, analytical ears, this album will bring great depth in relation to understanding the fringes modern jazz improvisation as a means of creation. Highly recommended.



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