Ineffable Joy

From the liner notes: "Prolific tenor saxophonist Ivo Perelman wanted to be on ESP-Disk', because ESP's 1967 Gato Barbieri album In Search Of The Mystery (ESPDISK 1049CD) was an important record for Perelman, both being South American tenorists of an avant bent. So it is no coincidence that the drummer on In Search Of The Mystery, Bobby Kapp (who's also on Noah Howard's second ESP-Disk', At Judson Hall (1968)), mans the kit for the present album. For that matter, the bassist, William Parker, made his recorded debut on ESP as well, playing on Frank Lowe's Black Beings (1973). And Perelman has a twenty-three-year/thirty-three-and-counting-albums collaboration with pianist Matthew Shipp, who's been associated with ESP since 2015. Kapp and Shipp are on Perelman's 2017 Leo album Tarvos, Parker and Shipp have made multiple albums with Perelman, and this is even the second time out for this quartet, after 2017's Heptagon (Leo). Somehow, though, their interplay remains fresh. Of course, each player has particular gestures and general textures that recur from time to time, but like a kaleidoscope, each turn finds familiar elements recombing into new patterns. Parker, Perelman, and Shipp frequently interweave spontaneous melodies of dazzling complexity. The free-bop of the rhythm section introduction to 'Jubilation' is an unexpected delight. Kapp's skittering accents throughout are a lesson in setting a pulse without being obvious about it, with 'Bliss' being a prime example. 'Exuberance' crowns the album in particularly ecstatic fashion, the four players' unique and distinctive styles coming together in an exultant expression of creative freedom that's communicative and accessible."Personnel: Ivo Perelman - tenor saxophone; Matthew Shipp - piano; William Parker - bass; Bobby Kapp - drums. Recorded April 21, 2018 at Park West Studio. Engineer: Jim Clouse.