Jim Baker, Kyle Bruckmann, Michael Zerang - Psychotic Redaction (2011) / Avant-Garde Jazz, Free Improvisation, Electronic, Ethnic, Tribal, Noise

Zerang, Bruckmann, and Baker shift gears a bit from their usual free jazz and improv modes and make a little bit of dance music. Well, sort of. Whether or not Psychotic Redaction would appeal to the “dance music” crowd I couldn’t say. My guess is the off kilter, jolting delivery along with passages of pure electronic chaos may prove to be a little off-putting. I can only imagine, however, that if some random DJ slipped ‘All Our Treasures Turned to Avalanche’ into the mix at an all night ecstasy drenched rave, it could only intensify the buzz. After-all, the appeal of music like drum and bass to the drug induced listener is the tribal, ancient rhythms at the core of it. To my ears, this album cuts through all the polished crap and gets down to the business directly. Michael Zerang employs mostly hand percussion on the album, providing a fascinating contrast to the electronics. Much like with his Friction Brothers trio, Zerang uses his nuanced touch to highlight all of the textural subtleties that the other two players are laying down. Jim Baker, known to most as the go-to pianist for jazz giants like Ken Vandermark and Fred Anderson, drops the keys here in favor of similarly painterly approach with electronics. He exchanges licks with Kyle Bruckmann, who mainly seems to be pulling electronics duty as well, with the occasional inclusion of some smart reed work. When his horn does make an appearance, it lends an otherworldly charm as in the closing track, ‘Bagpiping in the Shattered Vision Ward’. There’s a primal urgency in the sounds the trio are creating. They channel all the unreserved frenzy that makes many indigenous musics so dynamic. In a similar way, these tunes seem to emanate from the core of the earth to be birthed through the deft touch of these artists. Tribal dance music from an advanced race of beings for sure!