EVAN PARKER | DEREK BAILEY | HAN BENNINK - The Topography Of The Lungs (1970-2006) RM | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Along with the Spontaneous Music Ensemble's Karyobin and Tony Oxley's 4 Compositions for Sextet, The Topography of the Lungs is one of the landmark early albums of English free improvisation (despite the presence of Dutch percussionist and multi-instrumentalist Han Bennink), featuring guitarist Derek Bailey and saxophonist Evan Parker in positively coruscating form. This album launched the legendary Incus label in style, and original copies still contain the photocopied typewritten letter announcing the label's manifesto: "The bulk of the revenue from any Incus recording will go directly to the musicians....Once the basic cost of each record is recovered, thus providing the finance for the next, the vast bulk of all income will be paid in royalties to the artists. Incus has no intention of making profits in the conventional sense." (Back in Holland, Bennink had adopted a similar strategy for the ICP label he co-founded with saxophonist Willem Breuker and pianist Misha Mengelberg.) The same sense of commitment is to be found throughout the album, whose ultra-concentrated force marked a clear boundary line between the emerging European free music and its immediate precursor, American free jazz. Despite the music's furious energy -- verging at times on the downright violent, thanks in no small part to the irrepressible Bennink -- proceedings do not lack a sense of humor. Nor does the record's back cover, an almost Monty Pythonesque collage of pages from an old encyclopedia interspersed with brief, enigmatic phrases like "Frederick Rzewski writes about free improvisation and makes sense" and "If you like to draw or paint, this booklet could help change your life." If the booklet doesn't manage it, the music on the album certainly will. Dan Warburton  
Tracklist :
1    Titan Moon    20:45
2    For Peter B & Peter K    4:35
3    Fixed Elsewhere    5:05
4    Dogmeat    12:17
5    Found Elsewhere 1    4:40
6    Found Elsewhere 2    4:52
Guitar – Derek Bailey
Percussion – Han Bennink
Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Producer, Liner Notes – Evan Parker

EVAN PARKER - Saxophone Solos + Monoceros (1975-1978) 2 Albums | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

 Evan Parker- Saxophone Solos 

(1975-1994, Chronoscope Records – CPE2002-2)

What can be said about these historic recordings is limited, but that's because, while it's true that music can be and most often is beyond language (at least the English language) to describe, these solos are for the most part beyond the reach of even music to describe. Evan Parker has proven time and again his unwillingness to tread any path traveled before him (notice his typically European comments about American Eric Dolphy in the liner notes, where he concedes a point to an interviewer and then has to better it by claiming his own attempt at superiority -- yeah, it's whiny and one hopes he's matured in this way), and these solos from 1975 should prove that he has cut down the entire forest of trees that the instruction manuals for soprano saxophone were made from. These pieces are about sonic texture, tonality and atonality, and why they're both the same thing, and they reveal also the mechanical possibilities for the instrument that weren't even considered before he came along -- things like playing in all three registers of the instrument at the same time. There are two sets of pieces here, all of them called "Aerobatics" and then numbered one through 14. The first four were recorded during a live concert earlier in the year and the last ten at a studio in Berlin. Given what's on the studio set, it would appear as if the live gig inspired further exploration and new ideas as a result, because there is a marked difference in just a few months in the depth and breadth of Parker's ability to voice his ideas. The latter pieces all have quotes from Krapp's Last Tape, a play by Samuel Beckett, one of Parker's favorite writers. And that should come as no surprise; the sense of humor and irony in Parker's music is inseparable from his techniques. These early recordings of Parker's solo performances pointed the way for a body of music that is singular in its achievement, and stand the test of time on their own as brilliant, investigative, and provocative works of a musical firebrand.
-> This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa' <-

Tracklist:
1    Aerobatics 1 16:28
2    Aerobatics 2 6:35
3    Aerobatics 3 14:31
4    Aerobatics 4 3:48    
5    Aerobatics 5 7:05
6    Aerobatics 6 4:04
7    Aerobatics 7 1:49
8    Aerobatics 8 5:33
9    Aerobatics 9 2:27
10   Aerobatics 11 6:08
11   Aerobatics 12 0:11
12   Aerobatics 13 3:39
13   Aerobatics 14 6:57
Evan Parker - Composer, Producer, Sax (Soprano)  

 Evan Parker - Monoceros
(1978-2015, psi – psi 15.01)

Evan Parker is a virtuosic solo improviser, and these soprano saxophone recordings, made in England in 1978, are perhaps the next best thing to seeing him perform live. Monoceros is divided into four parts, but each is of comparable sonic quality. Parker uses rapid tonguing techniques and circular breathing to create a sound all his own, marked by the simultaneous intonation of multiple notes. When one listens to Evan Parker, one hears a note as well as all the residual tones around it; each breath ends up sounding like a battle between the different registers of the horn. At various times, Parker's saxophone sounds like dolphin speech, electronic tape squeals, or human murmurs; namely, anything but what it actually is. His language on the instrument is essential listening for anyone interested in acoustic experimental music. The Chronoscope CD version of Monoceros distinguishes itself from other Parker solo recitals by its relatively early recording date, excellent sound quality, and probing, anecdotal liner notes courtesy of Steve Lake. Henry M. Shteamer
Tracklist :
1    Monoceros 1    21:36
2    Monoceros 2    5:15
3    Monoceros 3    9:02
4    Monoceros 4    4:09
Soprano Saxophone – Evan Parker

EVAN PARKER & PAUL LYTTON - At the Unity Theatre (1975-2003) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Three years after Evan Parker and Paul Lytton's recording debut as a duo (Collective Calls, originally released by Incus), At the Unity Theatre captures them in a live setting. The studio album saw them foray into microscopic sounds. This time around the music is overall more feverish and loud, but it loses nothing in subtlety and intelligence. "In the Midst of Laughter and Glee," at 18 minutes long, stands as one of their best improvisations from that period. We are greeted by a low growl, like a long string being scratched; it may be the enigmatic lyttonophone but, in any case, it immediately tells you how unconventional this sax/drums duet was. Closer to the end, Parker squeezes out of his soprano sax the whiny sounds of an oboe or shenai, unfolding a sinuous mourning song that is simply stunning. He also plays a raspier tenor and uses a bullroarer and cassettes of prior performances -- but these are discernible only on very close listen. Lytton spends little time playing the drum kit in a conventional way. Instead he focuses on objects and scrap metal, but still makes quite a racket. The CD reissue of this album (on Parker's Psi imprint) adds over 22 minutes of previously unissued material in the form of two extra improvisations from the same concert. At 18 minutes,"Through Consensus" was too long to make it on the original LP without sacrificing "In the Midst of Laughter and Glee," which is simply better. Despite some captivating activity, the two musicians drift apart, Parker trying to force the piece into a more powerful direction while Lytton instead moves deeper within his pile of scrap metal. It makes a nice bonus though. François Couture  
Tracklist :
1    In The Midst Of Laughter And Glee    18:07
2    On Reflection    5:31
3    Mild Steel Rivets For P.H.    14:50
4    The Dirlston Dirler    7:30
5    Through Consensus    18:26
6    To Unity    4:03
7    Bonus Track    0:08
Percussion, Electronics [Live], Voice, Written-By – Paul Lytton
Producer – Derek Bailey
Soprano Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone, Reeds [Lyttonophone], Drums [Pole], Performer [Bullroarer, Cassettes], Liner Notes, Written-By – Evan Parker

EVAN PARKER - The Snake Decides (1986-2003) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Six years after Six of One, Evan Parker proposed another solo album. The Snake Decides features the man, his soprano saxophone, and a gifted sound engineer in Michael Gerzon, to whom Parker pays tribute in the liner notes to the CD reissue (a reissue that sticks to the original album, no bonus material on this one). Six of One is hard to beat, especially since at the time (1980) it represented a thunderous introduction to Parker's solo playing. But The Snake Decides manages to raise the ante, if only slightly. Parker's circular breathing has grown more flexible and frantic. One pictures a mad snake charmer, playing multiple melodies at once to make the snakes stretch into different directions and move in interlocking patterns. In "Buriden's Ass" and "Haine's Last Tape," the number of notes per minute hits a peak. But Parker's music has never been about keeping score. The flurry is necessary to mesmerize the listener, to hypnotize him, to make everything else within earshot fade away. All that remains is this kaleidoscope of multiphonics. The title track, 20-minutes long, can seem like something of an ordeal, but the absence of a pause or break in the flow of notes obliterates time. But the best, most impressive pieces are the shorter ones; they are brighter, friskier. Recommended. François Couture  
Tracklist :
1    The Snake Decides    19:56
2    Leipzig Folly    11:42
3    Buriden's Ass    6:29
4    Haine's Last Tape    6:01
Credits :
Soprano Saxophone, Composed By – Evan Parker

EVAN PARKER - Six Of One (2002) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Beware the solo improv album. Ever since Keith Jarrett singlehandedly made it unhip for skilled musicians to improvise in an accessible, tuneful way, improvised music has been largely the province of self-indulgent twerps who think that the ability to alienate audiences with hideous noise is an artistic gift. (Those who like hideous noise aren't complaining, mind you.) But saxophone virtuoso Evan Parker has always been just a bit different. Yes, he's eminently capable of producing ear-splitting skronk with the best and worst of them, but his solo improvisations are just as frequently things of kaleidoscopic delicacy and genuinely breathtaking inventiveness. This recording, which was made in a London church in 1980 (and had been out of print on LP for 20 years when it was reissued on CD in 2002) finds Parker exploring the sonic limits of his soprano saxophone in ways that evoke both the more adventurous jazz-based work of Anthony Braxton and future recordings by downtown legend John Zorn. His mastery of circular breathing techniques means that these pieces -- several of which are over ten minutes long -- proceed without interruption from beginning to end. Most are completely abstract and sound a bit like sped-up tape recordings of sea gulls being molested. But on "Three of Six" he begins with an angular but surprisingly lyrical melody, then gradually tears it apart and breaks it down into a series of fierce, angry squawls; on "Five of Six" he takes a similar approach, starting with a gentle melody played with a warm, open tone and then altering the tone of his saxophone drastically and using overtones and multiphonics to expand the melodic line into something entirely different. Every track on this album is worth hearing, and some of them are quite startlingly lovely. Rick Anderson  
Tracklist :
1    One Of Six    4:36
2    Two Of Six    11:46
3    Three Of Six    10:01
4    Four Of Six    10:50
5    Five Of Six    5:38
6    Six Of One    6:02
7    At Sixes And Sevens    6:53
Credits :
Soprano Saxophone, Composed By [All Music], Liner Notes – Evan Parker

EVAN PARKER - Lines Burnt in Light (2001) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Circular breathing -- Evan Parker's revolutionary saxophone technique -- had reached an impressive level of exposure by 2001. The groundbreaking flurries of notes have become textbook material for aspiring improvisers. Yet, after decades, Parker can still make it sound as cutting-edge and exciting as if he just discovered it. Lines Burnt in Light is comprised of three solo soprano saxophone improvisations recorded on October 11, 2001. Six weeks later the CD became the first release from Psi, Parker's own record label (his first since the founding days of Incus). The three pieces (27, 13, and 22 minutes long) were recorded at St. Michael and All Angels Church, a venue with fantastic acoustics. You can hear each of the musician's high-speed notes ricocheting on the high ceilings, its harmonics decaying left and right of the central fountain of sound. It renders Parker's soprano sax bigger than life. He performed "Line 1" before the audience arrived. A sense of urgency rarely heard in his '90s recordings inhabits the piece. The bad news is that this CD contains over an hour of nonstop streams of notes. Those who find that particular Parker sound annoying will bail out very quickly. But the mesmerizing, hypnotizing effect works great and the technique is simply stunning. So the good news is that Lines Burnt in Light stands as one of if not the best document illustrating the man's circular breathing/playing. Strongly recommended, especially to newcomers. François Couture  
Tracklist :
1     Line 1 27:23
Evan Parker
2     Line 2 12:30
Evan Parker    
3     Line 3 22:20
Evan Parker
Credits :
Soloist, Soprano Saxophone, Composed By, Liner Notes – Evan Parker

HAN BENNINK | EVAN PARKER | The Grass Is Greener (2002) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Released on Evan Parker's own label, Psi, The Grass Is Greener is a nice session between him and drummer Han Bennink. The relationship between the two musicians goes back to the late '60s when they took part in Peter Brötzmann's groundbreaking Machine Gun. Yet, duets between them have been rare. That's the reasoning behind this release, despite a shaky sound quality. It comes as a surprise, since the album was recorded at Gateway Studios with Steve Lowe at the desk. Nevertheless, the first track, the 15-minute "Traps of Appetite," sounds like a soundcheck. The musicians change place in the spectrum, and some sudden alterations in sound quality indicate shifts between microphones. Once the setup is complete, the players still feel distant and the volume level remains low (maybe the mastering is inadequate). Hi-fi considerations aside, Bennink and Parker are in great shape, playful and witty as ever. The drummer throws in a few beats but fails to corner the saxophonist, who uncharacteristically sticks to the tenor sax and a warmer, more ample sound. The 20-minute "Traps of Instinct" contains flaring moments, but the best pieces are the short ones that round up the album after the two opening epics. "The Empty Hook" turns into an African polyrhythmic groove that will have you check the booklet again to make sure Hamid Drake did not happen to pass by. And if you set your CD player on repeat mode, you'll find Bennink ending "To Tangle Lure and Snare" with the same gong stroke he used to kick off "Traps of Appetite," wrapping things up in a neat package. François Couture  
Tracklist :
1    Traps Of Appetite    15:15
2    Traps Of Instinct    20:23
3    Outside The Usual Rules Of The Eating Game    5:18
4    Smoke Of Sacrifice    7:30
5    The Empty Hook    5:23
6    Coyotes Are Eating Pure Bred Poodles In Beverly Hills    2:24
7    Pluto Has A Moon    4:21
8    To Tangle Lure And Snare    2:03
Credits :
Saxophone, Producer – Evan Parker
Percussion, Artwork [Cover Art] – Han Bennink

EVAN PARKER | GEORGE LEWIS - From Saxophone & Trombone (2002) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

This stunning collection of saxophone and trombone duos was recorded at the Art Workers' Guild in London by Adam Skeaping back in May 1980 and originally released on Incus, a label that Evan Parker ran jointly with guitarist Derek Bailey. The fact that there's no mention of this on this reissue on Parker's own PSI imprint testifies to the frosty relations that still exist between the two giants of improvised music. Fortunately, trombonist George Lewis has remained on good terms with both; in point of fact, it's hard to see how anyone could dislike Lewis if his rambunctious virtuosity and good-humored mastery of the trombone are anything to go by. He can take it up into soprano sax country or plunge it into the piano bottom octave register at will, pop, plop and crackle like a toyshop and go head to head with Parker's legendary circular breathing. Parker's early 1980s albums mark the boundary between his early, angular playing (traces of a jazz past are never far from the surface) and the awesome virtuosity of his later work, especially on soprano. The re-release of this album is cause for celebration indeed -- would that Lewis could use his good offices to negotiate a Parker / Bailey truce, and with it the reissue of their mythic and magnificent first Incus outing, The Topography of The Lungs. Dan Warburton  
Tracklist :
1    One    11:01
2    Two    2:02
3    Three    9:50
4    Four    5:03
5    Five    14:53
Credits :Saxophone – Evan Parker
Trombone – George Lewis

EVAN PARKER - Free Zone Appleby 2002 + Free Zone Appleby 2003 (2003-2004) 3CD | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

 Free Zone Appleby 2002
(2003, psi – psi 03.02/3) 2CD
This double-CD set documents the "Free Zone" feature of the 2002 Appleby Jazz Festival. All these performances were captured live at the acoustically rich St. Michael's Church in Appleby (England). A pool of eight free improvisers, some well-known (Evan Parker, Philipp Wachsmann, Marcio Mattos, John Edwards, Mark Sanders) and others still cruelly under-recorded (Neil Metcalfe, John Rangecroft, Sylvia Hallett), spontaneously combine their skills in a series of ad hoc duets, trios, quartets, and a final octet. It is not said if the pieces are presented in the order of performance, but considering the symmetry with which each disc unfolds, one guesses that some editing and sequencing came into play to make the listening experience more pleasurable. Each CD starts with a solo performance: Hallett's captivating voice-and-violin dirge "Whitethroat" and Edwards' bass solo "Pin Drop." Then the groups gradually grow larger. With a total duration of over 150 minutes, Free Zone Appleby 2002 is a generous set, too generous for a single sitting (the sequencing of the discs as separate entities comes in handy), and highlights abound. But the two outstanding pieces are provided by the rhythm section (using the term oh so loosely) of Edwards and Sanders as they engage with Rangecroft in "Subject Matters" and Hallett in "Phantoms." They gracefully adapt their playing to these two very different musicians -- Rangecroft being a more pragmatic, intellectual player, while Hallett operates on a more atavistic or spiritual level. After such focused music, "Morsman Octet" comes as a light disappointment: the group has a hard time getting the music to flow effortlessly. But that's hardly a turnoff, only a somehow anticlimactic finale. François Couture  
Tracklist :
1-1    Gong (For Phil Seamen)    0:16
1-2    Whitethroat    17:17
1-3    Re Eden    9:53
1-4    Subject Matters    16:31
1-5    Dunsany    14:06
1-6    Ferber String Quartet    20:09
2-1    Pin Drop    15:03
2-2    Sense    9:19
2-3    Phantoms    10:56
2-4    Pica Pica    7:28
2-5    Mgt4all    15:08
2-6    Morsman Octet    16:16
Credits :
Bass – John Edwards (pistas: 1-4, 1-6, 2-1, 2-3, 2-6)
Cello – Marcio Mattos (pistas: 1-5, 1-6, 2-4 to 2-6)
Clarinet – John Rangecroft (pistas: 1-3 to 1-5, 2-6)
Flute – Neil Metcalfe (pistas: 1-5, 2-2, 2-5, 2-6)
Painting [Paintings] – Phil Morsman
Percussion – Mark Sanders (pistas: 1-4, 2-3, 2-5, 2-6)
Soprano Saxophone – Evan Parker (pistas: 1-1, 1-3, 2-6)
Violin, Electronics – Philipp Wachsmann (pistas: 1-6, 2-2, 2-6)
Violin, Voice, Sarangi – Sylvia Hallett (pistas: 1-2, 1-5, 1-6, 2-3 to 2-6)

Free Zone Appleby 2003
(2004, psi – psi 04.05)
This release from PSI Records has all the markings of its affiliated and prestigious Emanem label: a stable of (mostly) London-based free-style improvisers who are associated with Emanem; extraordinary musicianship, with all the music freely improvised; and very good recording fidelity. Taken from the Appleby Jazz Festival in 2003, the collection centers around the string quartet of bassist John Edwards, violinists Sylvia Hallett and Philipp Wachsmann, and cellist Marcio Mattos, with eight musicians in the aggregate participating, including the well-known Evan Parker and Kenny Wheeler. The groups are varied, so that there are a couple of duos, and various quartets and quintets. While the quality of the performances is uniformly high, and there are wonderful moments almost everywhere, it is perhaps surprising that the best tracks (such as "S4-1"), that is, those that challenge the listener the most and contain the most variety emotionally, are the ones featuring the core string quartet. The finely executed "S4/TC-2," in which Tony Coe's clarinet melds gently with the hushed cries of the string quartet, presents a distinctly sophisticated and tuneful chamber feel, something that characterizes much of the album. Wheeler is a strong addition to the few tracks on which he plays, focusing on a genre of lyrical free improvisation in which he is most effective. Evan Parker's appearances are slightly disappointing, if only because he appears so infrequently and his anticipated duo with Wheeler on "W2-1" is somewhat of a letdown. Nonetheless, the album does offer the opportunity to hear him in different contexts than usual. While hardly indispensable, Free Zone Appleby offers yet another glimpse into the astonishingly creative world of British free improvisation. Steve Loewy
Tracklist :
1    S4-1 3:14
2    S4/TC-1 4:58
3    S4-2 5:05
4    W2-1 4:56
5    S4/KW-1 2:42
6    S4-3 4:12
7    S4/EP 5:18
8    S4-4 8:13
9    W2-2 3:13
10    S4/KW-2 7:47
11    S4-5 6:32
12    S4/TC-2 3:19
13    W4/JE 8:53
14    S4/AH 7:16
Credits :
Bass – John Edwards
Cello – Marcio Mattos
Clarinet – Alan Hacker, Tony Coe
Flugelhorn –  Sylvia Hallett
Painting – Phil Morsman
Soprano Saxophone – Evan Parker
Violin, Electronics – Philipp Wachsmann
Violin, Voice, Sarangi – Sylvia Hallett

EVAN PARKER | PAUL LYTTON - Collective Calls (Urban) (Two Microphones) (2002) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Recorded over two days in April 1972 and first released as an Incus LP later that year, Collective Calls is the first album by the Evan Parker/Paul Lytton duo. Subtitled "An improvised urban psychodrama in eight parts," it was filled with amazing sounds that remain puzzling to this day and used the LP format in unusual ways. First, it is anything but a sax-and-drums session. Of course, Parker is already developing the avant-gardist techniques that will turn him into one of the best-known figures of the British free improv scene. But here he also plays wooden flutes and maybe some other instruments (bird calls? mouthpieces alone?). Lytton's drum set includes a lot of scrap metal and junk objects. The pair explores the very quiet and very loud, unveiling new sounds and textures in every track. "Peradam" opens the proceedings with something pretty close to what someone familiar with the duo's work in the '80s and '90s might expect. "Cat's Flux 2" includes flutes and strange bowed sounds (maybe an amplified long string). "Shaker" and "Lytton Perdu," both 13 minutes long, move into the very quiet and textural, extremely adventurous by 1972 standards and still cutting-edge when the album was reissued on CD in 2002. What's most striking, though, is how the tracks have been organized. They form a succession of sharp contrasts, with each side of the original LP ending with a short drone piece that leaves the listener clueless. Decades after the fact, Collective Calls still packs an artistic punch. François Couture  
Tracklist :
1    Peradam    5:15
2    Cat's Flux 2    5:48
3    Shaker    13:01
4    Left Of The Neo-Left    1:18
5    Lytton Perdu    13:25
6    Voice Fragment    0:25
7    Some Mother Blues    8:06
8    What's Left Of The Neo-Left    1:59
Credits :
Percussion, Drums – Paul Lytton
Saxophone, Liner Notes – Evan Parker

FOXES FOX - Foxes Fox + Naan Tso (1999-2005) 2 Albums | FLAC (image+tracks+.cue), lossless

 This is apparently the first recording of the quartet consisting of Parker on both tenor and soprano saxes, Steve Beresford on piano, Louis Moholo on drums, and John Edwards on bass. It is a stunning document all the way around. Parker plays on only five of the nine tracks, but the members of the rhythm trio perform magnificently on their features. Beresford is an original improviser form the Cecil Taylor school, while Moholo adds a sophisticated air, and Edwards continues to show himself as one of the leading free-style bassists. Still, it is largely Parker's show, and although the saxophonist does not mine any new ground, he is in superb form. He plays mostly tenor, on which he blows more conventionally, though no less thrillingly than on soprano. A generous recording time just over 77 minutes is an extra bonus. Steve Loewy
Tracklist :
1     Wood on Wood 3:58
John Edwards / Louis Moholo
2     Amoebic Mystery 22:33
Steve Beresford / John Edwards / Louis Moholo / Evan Parker
3     Running (With Scissors) 6:36
Steve Beresford / John Edwards / Louis Moholo
4     Bird With a Shell 11:57
Steve Beresford / John Edwards / Louis Moholo / Evan Parker
5     Snail/Kite 4:20
Steve Beresford / John Edwards
6     Fox's Fox 3:55
Louis Moholo / Evan Parker
7     Foxes Fox 17:16
Steve Beresford / John Edwards / Louis Moholo / Evan Parker
8     Toast Sweat 3:25
Steve Beresford / Louis Moholo
9     Dog Bone D Flat 3:34
Steve Beresford / John Edwards / Louis Moholo / Evan Parker
Credits :
Double Bass – John Edwards (faixas: 1 to 5, 7, 9)
Drums, Cymbal, Timpani, Claves – Louis Moholo (faixas: 1 to 4, 6 to 9)
Music By – Evan Parker, John Edwards, Louis Moholo, Steve Beresford
Piano – Steve Beresford (faixas: 2 to 5, 7 to 9)
Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone – Evan Parker (faixas: 2, 4, 6, 7, 9) 

 Foxes Fox - Naan Tso
(2005, psi – psi 05.07)

Recorded five years after Foxes Fox, this quartet's debut (released under the musicians' separate names with Evan Parker in the lead position), Naan Tso brings listeners up to date on these sly improvisers' adventures together and serves as a farewell to drummer Louis Moholo, who moved back to Cape Town, South Africa, in September 2005, after decades spent in exile in England. Naan Tso features four improvisations recorded at Steve Lowe's Gateway Studios. The whole quartet is heard on three of these pieces; pianist Steve Beresford sits out the slightly shorter "Slightly Foxed." With seasoned improvisers such as Parker, Beresford, Moholo, and John Edwards, there is no need to worry. Though the music is free to (and does) go anywhere, the listener usually knows what to expect -- and Naan Tso does not disappoint: dynamic playing, fierce exchanges between tenor sax and piano, delicate work from bass and drums, and a willingness to share collective fun with the listener. Free or not, Moholo always had that certain swing in his fingers (listen to his ride cymbal in the first minutes of "Renard Pâle," among other places). This jazziness permeates the music, crossing over from stage right to stage left to clash with Beresford's "classical pianist going through a breakdown" style. More often than not, that is the force field driving the music onward. Naan Tso may lack a bit in the surprise department, but it still offers a good, enjoyable session from a formation that has had very little exposure outside of England. You might want to get Foxes Fox first, though. François Couture
Tracklist :
1    Naan Tso    30:58
2    Slightly Foxed    8:43
3    Reinecke Gefettet    13:56
4    Renard Pâle    15:24
Credits :
Double Bass – John Edwards
Percussion – Louis Moholo-Moholo
Piano – Steve Beresford
Tenor Saxophone, Liner Notes – Evan Parker

EVAN PARKER - Free Zone Appleby 2004 (2005) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

In 2004, the Free Zone feature of the Appleby Jazz Festival presented a sequence of duo and trio combinations featuring bassist Barry Guy, percussionist Paul Lytton, saxophonist Evan Parker, violinist Philipp Wachsmann, and Joel Ryan on live computer processing. Free Zone Appleby 2004 culls pieces taken from each of the four sets. Every set was twofold, starting with a duo between Ryan and one of the acoustic players, followed by a trio between the three other musicians. The track list on the CD reflects this organization, systematically permuting players. Ryan's work with free improvisers never ceases to amaze; his approach is much more complementary than the usual fragmentation processes of other computer artists working in live situations. His duo with Wachsmann ranks among the best material he has recorded yet. The two of them are literally fused together, each one reinventing the language of the other. The duo with Barry Guy also reaches impressive heights. The other duos fall more within expectations -- strong, but not surprising. The trios are also rather uneventful, as Guy, Lytton, Parker, and Wachsmann have been improvising together for so many years. Each lineup produces good interaction levels, with a special mention going to "Trio-3" by Parker, Guy, and Wachsmann, but these pieces present nothing different that would recommend them over earlier recordings. That said, Ryan's presence on over half of the album is reason enough to add this title to your collection. François Couture
Tracklist :
1    Duo-1    11:38
2    Trio-1    7:28
3    Duo-2    6:33
4    Trio-2    6:50
5    Duo-3    11:45
6    Trio-3    8:44
7    Duo-4    18:24
8    Trio-4    7:57
Credits :
Bass – Barry Guy (pistas: 2, 3, 6, 8)
Effects [Live Processing] – Joel Ryan (pistas: 1, 3, 5, 7)
Painting – Phil Morsman
Percussion – Paul Lytton (pistas: 2, 4, 5, 8)
Soprano Saxophone – Evan Parker (pistas: 2, 4, 6, 7)
Violin, Electronics – Philipp Wachsmann (pistas: 1, 4, 6, 8)

EVAN PARKER OCTET - Crossing the River (2006) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Recorded at Gateway Studios on May 2, 2005, this session features a generous cross section of Evan Parker's recent musical partners, delightfully recorded as always by engineer Steve Lowe. The lineup consists of Parker (on tenor sax only); regulars Philipp Wachsmann, Marcio Mattos, John Edwards, and John Russell; lesser-known figures pianist Agustí Fernández and clarinetist John Rangecroft; and the too rarely documented Neil Metcalfe on flute. This octet is featured in three pieces, two of them in the 20-minute range. The other half of the album consists of smaller groupings. This is collective free improvisation at its finest, with telepathic turns, instantly choreographed exchanges, and a tight yet detailed group sound, especially in "Octet I," in which Parker himself remains conspicuously discreet. After this intense ensemble piece, the group breaks down into gradually smaller formations for a number of shorter pieces, starting with a strong string quintet (violin, cello, bass, guitar, and piano). Rangecroft displays a lot of uncanny elegance in "Trio III," but the highlight of these small-scale numbers is the "Duo" between Metcalfe and Fernández, oddly romantic in its own way. "Octet 2" gets back to a denser sound and epic interaction, peaking with a frantic episode between strings and saxophone. As a whole, Crossing the River is more subdued or tempered than the average Parker release. It leaves room to breathe, which might offer fans of quieter improv a good occasion to get back in touch with Parker's work. François Couture  
Tracklist :
1    Octet 1    23:41
2    Quintet    10:25
3    Trio 1    3:00
4    Trio 2    5:45
5    Trio 3    6:40
6    Duo    7:05
7    Octet 2    19:18
8    Octet 3    0:40
Credits :
Bass – John Edwards
Cello – Marcio Mattos
Clarinet – John Rangecroft
Flute – Neil Metcalfe
Guitar – John Russell
Piano – Agustí Fernández
Tenor Saxophone – Evan Parker
Violin – Philipp Wachsmann

PAOLO ANGELI | EVAN PARKER | NET ROTHENBERG - Free Zone Appleby 2007 (2009) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Tracklist :
1    Shield (Blue) Duo 1    13:02
2    Shield (Blue) Duo 2    10:55
3    Shield (Blue) Trio 1    2:50
4    Shield (Blue) Trio 2    4:52
5    Shield (Blue) Trio 3    7:34
6    Shield (Blue) Trio 4    7:07
7    Shield (Blue) Trio 5    3:34
8    Shield (Blue) Trio 6    7:33
Credits :
Alto Saxophone, Clarinet, Bass Clarinet – Ned Rothenberg
Guitar [Sardinian], Electronics – Paolo Angeli (pistas: 1, 3 to 8)
Painting – Phil Morsman
Soprano Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Evan Parker (pistas: 2 to 8)

EVAN PARKER - Whitstable Solo (2010) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
1    Whitstable Solo 1    9:30
2    Whitstable Solo 2    4:22
3    Whitstable Solo 3    6:45
4    Whitstable Solo 4    6:23
5    Whitstable Solo 5    7:48
6    Whitstable Solo 6    5:18
7    Whitstable Solo 7    5:27
8    Whitstable Solo α-ω    15:06
Credits :
Soprano Saxophone – Evan Parker

GRUTRONIC AND EVAN PARKER - Together In Zero Space (2011) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Tracklist :
1    Filigree And Circuitry    26:07
2    Mesomerism In Rhythm    22:16
Credits :
Electronics [Drosscillator] – David Ross
Electronics [Transduction] – Nick Grew
Keyboards, Effects [Processing] – Stephen Grew
Soprano Saxophone – Evan Parker
Synthesizer [Buchla Lightning], Electronics [Blippoo Box], Mastered By – Richard Scott

EVAN PARKER | MARK NAUSEEF | TOMA GOUBAND - As the Wind (2016) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Tracklist :
1    As The Wind    13:36
2    Seeking The Bubble Reputation    6:59
3    Like A Wild-goose Flies    4:42
4    Make Noise Enough    11:53
5    Ambitious For A Motley Coat    10:38
6    As A Weasel Sucks Eggs    1:21
7    Come Warble, Come    1:21
8    Pipes And Whistles In His Sound    3:52
9    Sane Everything    6:41
Credits :
Percussion – Mark Nauseef
Percussion [Lithophones] – Toma Gouband
Soprano Saxophone – Evan Parker

PARKER / LEE / EVANS - The Bleeding Edge (2011) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
1    Trio 1    7:15
2    Trio 2    6:39
3    Duo 1    4:47
4    Trio 3    5:52
5    Duo 2    5:27
6    Trio 4    9:43
7    Duo 3    4:35
8    Duo 4    4:27
9    Duo 5    4:19
10    Trio 5    8:35
11    Trio 6    6:20
Credits :
Cello – Okkyung Lee
Soprano Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Evan Parker
Trumpet, Piccolo Trumpet – Peter Evans