Marc Edwards / Weasel Walter Group: Blood Of The Earth (2010)

Mark Corroto

Senior Contributor since 1999

Mark misses his large dog Louie, but endeavors daily to find and listen to new and interesting sounds.

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Published: July 6, 2010

Marc Edwards / Weasel Walter Group: Blood Of The Earth

Double drummer-led free jazz sessions come with a price, and both aural and contemplative muscles need to be flexed. With Blood Of The Earth, from drummers Marc Edwards and Weasel Walter Weasel Walter
b.1972
drums , the challenges for immersion in a sonic concentration of spontaneity and stamina.

But this is not your father's retread of John Coltrane John Coltrane
1926 - 1967
saxophone 's Ascension (Impulse!, 1965). The two drummers have taken the 1960's concept of freedom as starting point and fired their rockets way past the stellar regions.

Edwards—a former member of bands by Cecil Taylor Cecil Taylor
b.1929
piano , Charles Gayle Charles Gayle
b.1939
saxophone and David S. Ware David S. Ware
1949 - 2012
sax, tenor —teams with Walter, founder of founded the Flying Luttenbachers and whose music bridges jazz and hardcore. Only saxophonist Darius Jones Darius Jones

sax, alto is retained from Edwards and Walter's previous disc, Mysteries Beneath The Planet (ugEXPLODE, 2009); this 2009 session also features trumpeter Forbes Graham Forbes Graham

trumpet , firebrand saxophonist Elliott Levin Elliott Levin
and bassist Adam Lane Adam Lane
b.1868
bass, acoustic , who might be the only anchor holding this group from levitation.

The sextet sustains two tracks of 32 and 27 minutes each, with only a few passages of respite. The incessant nature of this music acts like a shot of espresso to an ADHD (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) sufferer. The power and pulse is actually calming, once inside the music. The ebb and flow of energies and solos compliment the rawness with occasional serene passages, but it's just the calm before the coming storms.

Track Listing: Red Stream; Black Earth.

Personnel: Marc Edwards: drums; Weasel Walter: drums; Forbes Graham: trumpet; Darius Jones: alto saxophone; Elliott Levin: tenor saxophone, flute; Adam Lane: double-bass.

Record Label: ugEXPLODE
Style: Free Improv/Avant-Garde