PETER BRÖTZMANN CHICAGO TENTET – American Landscapes 1 (2007) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
1    American Landscapes 1    43:39
Credits :
Baritone Saxophone, Saxophone [Slide] – Mats Gustafsson
Bass – Kent Kessler
Cello – Fred Lonberg-Holm
Clarinet, Baritone Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Ken Vandermark
Clarinet, Tárogató, Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone, Music By, Painting [Cover] – P. Brötzmann
Drums – Michael Zerang, Paal Nilssen-Love
Trombone – Hannes Bauer
Trumpet, Alto Saxophone – Joe McPhee
Tuba – Per Åke Holmlander

PETER BRÖTZMANN CHICAGO TENTET — American Landscapes 2 (2007) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
1    American Landscapes 2    52:48
Credits :
Baritone Saxophone, Saxophone [Slide] – Mats Gustafsson
Bass – Kent Kessler
Cello – Fred Lonberg-Holm
Clarinet, Baritone Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Ken Vandermark
Clarinet, Tárogató, Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone, Music By, Painting [Cover] – P. Brötzmann
Drums – Michael Zerang, Paal Nilssen-Love
Trombone – Hannes Bauer
Trumpet, Alto Saxophone – Joe McPhee
Tuba – Per Åke Holmlander

EVAN PARKER TRIO & PETER BRÖTZMANN TRIO - Bishop's Move (2004) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

A happening. Not that these two heavyweight reedsmen had never shared a stage, but this was going to be a face-off, a clash between two of the hardest-working free improv trios on the circuit. On the left side of the stage: Evan Parker, with drummer Paul Lytton and pianist Alex von Schlippenbach, the latter filling in for bassist Barry Guy. On the right side: Peter Brötzmann and his trusty rhythm section, bassist William Parker and drummer Hamid Drake. These are two highly experienced and gifted trios, with different approaches (complementary ones, some will say). And what happened on-stage, as The Bishop's Move testifies, was a magical 75 minutes of relentless improvising, with a constant shift between open-ended sharing and thrust-and-parry dynamics. The single continuous piece begins with all six musicians on stage. Right out of the gate, the players hit an energy peak, eager to demonstrate that this meeting will not be for the weak. Things do quiet down afterwards, especially as players start walking off and coming back, sifting through a number of subgroupings, including the original two trios and a piano-plus-double-percussion segment. Parker displays his unmatched technique early on, while Brötzmann waits until 50 minutes in before taking the stage by storm and literally stealing the show, first with an inspired clarinet solo over Parker's bass and Drake's frantic djembe, then with a devastating sax segment as Drake moves back to the drumkit. Most supergroups don't live up to expectations, but this one delivers all the promises contained within its name. Compared to the laid-back performances found on the recent Parker/Schlippenbach/Lytton two-CD set released on Psi (America 2003, recorded during the same tour), The Bishop's Move is surprisingly high-energy. And all for the better. François Couture  
Tracklist :
1    The Bishop's Move    1:13:31
Credits :
Double Bass – William Parker
Drums, Djembe, Percussion – Hamid Drake
Drums, Percussion – Paul Lytton
Piano – Alex Von Schlippenbach
Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone – Evan Parker
Tenor Saxophone, Tárogató [Tarogato], Alto Clarinet – Peter Brötzmann

THE PETER BRÖTZMANN OCTET — The Complete Machine Gun Sessions (1968-2007) RM | Unheard Music Series | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This historic free jazz album is a heavy-impact sonic assault so aggressive it still knocks listeners back on their heels decades later. Recorded in May 1968, Machine Gun captures some top European improvisers at the beginning of their influential careers, and is regarded by some as the first European -- not just German or British -- jazz recording. Originally self-released by Peter Brötzmann, the album eventually came out on the FMP label, and set a new high-water mark for free jazz and "energy music" that few have approached since. Brötzmann is joined on sax by British stalwart Evan Parker and Dutch reedsman Willem Breuker (before Breuker moved away from free music, his lungs were as powerful as Brötzmann's). The rest of the group consists of drummers Han Bennink (Dutch) and Sven-Åke Johansson (Swedish), Belgian pianist Fred van Hove, and bassists Peter Kowald (German) and Buschi Niebergall (Swiss). Brötzmann leads this octet in a notoriously concentrated dose of the relentless hard blowing so often characteristic of his music. While Brötzmann has played this powerfully on albums since, never again is it with a group of this size playing just as hard with him. The players declare and exercise their right to bellow and wail all they want; they both send up the stereotype of free playing as simply screaming, and unapologetically revel in it. The sound of Machine Gun is just as aggressive and battering as its namesake, blowing apart all that's timid, immovable, or proper with an unrepentant and furious finality. The years have not managed to temper this fiery furnace blast from hell; it's just as relentless and shocking an assault now as it was then. Even stout-hearted listeners will nearly be sent into hiding -- much like standing outside during a violent storm, withstanding this kind of fierce energy is a primal thrill. Joslyn Layne  
Tracklist :
The Original BRO LP   
1    Machine Gun 17:19
Written-By – Brötzmann
2    Responsible / For Jan Van De Ven 8:20
Written-By – Van Hove
3    Music For Han Bennink 11:29
Written-By – Breuker
Alternate Takes   
4    Machine Gun (Second Take) 15:01
Written-By – Brötzmann
5    Responsible / For Jan Van De Ven (First Take) 10:08
Written-By – Van Hove
Machine Gun Live   
6        Machine Gun 17:40
Tenor Saxophone – Gerd Dudek
Written-By – Brötzmann
Credits :
Bass – Buschi Niebergall, Peter Kowald
Cover [Image - Schiesscheibe, C. 1967, Oil On Found Materials] – Peter Brötzmann
Drums – Han Bennink, Sven-Åke Johansson
Piano – Fred Van Hove
Tenor Saxophone – Evan Parker
Tenor Saxophone, Baritone Saxophone – Peter Brötzmann
Tenor Saxophone, Bass Clarinet – Willem Breuker