Customer Reviews

Genesis & The Opening of the Way

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Steve Coleman has been one of the few young jazz artists doing anything progressive for the past 10 or 15 years, and this album, particularly the second disc, is the highest level the Five Elements have ever reached.Coleman had been using Gene Lake on drums, who is one of the most powerful and precise drummers in the business, but he has Sean Rickman on this album. If you haven't heard of him, you better ask someone. As good as Lake is, Rickman is playing stuff that is just ridiculous.He is also using David Dyson on bass, which is new for him. Again, Coleman has found someone who can seriously play.The best way to sum up the album is mentioned in the liner notes. Coleman's music is "improvisation within nested looping structures."This album represents the way jazz would be moving if more cats would dare to be visionary.

I hesitated to write this review because Steve Coleman's music is very difficult to describe with words. You have to reach outside your normal vocabulary to describe the adventuresome music that this artist creates on "Genesis and The Opening of The Way." I can only describe this music as rhythm-deep with a continuously pulsating vibe that shakes your very soul. Coleman manages to conjure up very hypnotic trance-like grooves that are filled with wonderful nuggets of improvisation and melody. This band is also very tightly wound and supportive. I had never heard drummer Sean Rickman before this recording. It is awesome the way he drives the complex rhythms while Coleman improvises on top of the pulsating grooves. This is some of the most exciting Jazz I have heard in a long time. Repeated listening to the two discs only deepens your experience with this vibrant music. On top of all that, Coleman plays some of the meatiest Alto these ears have ever heard. This music may be difficult to listen to for the jazz purist, but if you are looking for new musical adventures - get this CD. You won't be disappointed. This is exceptional music. ...