Label: Mahakala Records, 2022
Personnel - Marshall Allen: alto saxophone, EVI; Chris Hemmingway: tenor saxophone; Nicoletta Manzini: alto saxophone; Tyler Mitchell: bass; Wayne Smith: drums; Elson Nascimento: percussion.
Veteran bassist Tyler Mitchell was a member of the Sun Ra Arkestra in the 1980s, participating in two of their albums, After Hours and Reflections in Blue, both from 1986. He also played with saxophonist George Coleman, singer Shirley Horn, and drummer Art Taylor. Not as active as a leader, Mitchell released Live At Smalls under his own name in 2012, an auspicious debut album in which he was in command of a pliant New York quintet. Now he presents Dancing Shadows, a 12-track effort featuring a multi-generational sextet which, in addition to a couple of originals, tackles five pieces by Sun Ra and one by Thelonious Monk. On board with him for this sonic journey is the current leader of the Arkestra, the 97-year-old maestro Marshall Allen.
The group infests Ra’s “Interstellar Low Ways” with a melody that recalls “Tenderly” and solos from the three reedists - Nicoletta Manzini, who occasionally revisits the melody, Chris Hemmingway, who mixes outside playing with bluesy incursions, and Allen, who concludes ebulliently. Other Ra numbers include “Angels and Demons at Play”, where all things flutter around a 14-note, 10-beat-cycle bass figure; the uptempo free romp “Dancing Shadows”, which swings at the bottom and twists at the surface with multiple horn deliveries; and “Care Free”, whose three time feel welcomes Allen at the front. There's also this beautiful “Enlightenment”, offering an enjoyable melodic narrative over a confident rhythmic strut, whereas “A Call For All Demons” concludes the program with exoticism.
Monk’s intricate groover “Skippy” finds a spot for the bassist/bandleader, who penned the brushes-driven ballad “Nico” for Manzini and the percussively inspired “Marshall the Deputy” with Allen in mind. The group fearlessly embraces abstraction in Manzini’s “Spaced Out”, which flows in Ra’s cosmic fashion with conspicuous EVI adornments. Pure tradition interlaces with explorative space jazz and modern adjustments in an album that brings nostalgia and new discoveries to the table.
Favorite Tracks:
06 - Dancing Shadows ► 08 - Marshall the Deputy ► 11 - Enlightenment