Phil Haynes was 62 years of age on 15 June, a Downtown warrior who has remained true to the ethos of experimentalism ever since the term became fashionable in the 1980s. His circle includes many musicians who have, or had, built modest reputations as ‘downtown experimentalists’, such as Ellery Eskelin, Herb Robertson, Hank Roberts, Mark Feldman, Kermit Driscoll, Drew Gress and several others whose names trouble the automatic spellcheck. The onset of Haynes’ retirement age prompted an urge to revisit projects he had created in the past, hence this, the third album by No Fast Food.

It’s a two-CD set of spontaneous interaction, moderated, as the liner notes by Haynes say, with “occasional conduction” (Butch Morris’ apposite term for directing the ebb and flow of spontaneity, louder, softer; more intense, less intense and so on) by conducting.

From time to time, a prearranged theme will pop its head above the water, while a ritual like solemnity with gongs and bells imply a spiritual component. Liebman can be relied upon to contribute to the very best of his considerable ability on every recording he participates, whatever the context. He is a banker to lift even the most ordinary session off the ground by sheer force of musical personality. But even he struggles to get past Steve Lacy’s observation that ultimate freedom can in itself be limiting, as everything ends up sounding the same, especially over two discs.