Variable Density Sound Orchestra | Evolving Strategies | Not Two Records

Talk with just about any improviser and he or she will tell you that their music happens in the moment, it’s best when they are fully in the present. Garrison Fewell always recruits members of the Variable Density Sound Orchestra (VDSO) that he knows can perform fully in the moment. It gives the music it’s vividness and urgency and it’s spiritual core as well. “In Buddhism there are three existences of life—past, present, and future—and they are all one,” explains Garrison, a practicing Buddhist for nearly 40 years. “Everything is determined in the present moment—a series of present moments.” Which is as good a description of the music on this disc as any. — Ed Hazell Continue reading

Thomas Borgmann | Wilber Morris | Reggie Nicholson | Nasty & Sweet | No Business Records

From the first few notes, it’s apparent that something special is happening on Nasty & Sweet. Perhaps it’s the way bassist Wilber Morris and drummer Reggie Nicholson sound so assured in their placement of the merest splashes of color. Completely unafraid to take their time, creating a powerful tension which isn’t released even when German reedman Thomas Borgmann joins with his breathily majestic tenor saxophone smears. There is a story here. — John Sharpe Continue reading