Alex Bonney/Paul Dunmall/Mark Sanders: The Beholder’s Stare
Author: Daniel Spicer
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Musicians: |
Mark Sanders |
Label: |
Bead Records Bead |
Magazine Review Date: |
March/2024 |
Media Format: |
CD, DL |
Catalogue Number: |
48 |
RecordDate: |
Rec. 11 November 2022 |
One of Sun Ra’s great contributions to improvised music was the notion of using the synthesiser not as a melodic instrument, but as a generator of pure, abstract sound. It’s an idea Alex Bonney pursues to mind-bending effect on these three otherworldly jams in the company of two dependable UK heavyweights, drummer Mark Sanders and saxophonist Paul Dunmall.
On the opening 'Resonance Refractions', the synth gloops up a thick murk, seeded with a grainy drizzle of drums and cymbals, out of which Dunmall’s sax emerges with a forlorn call. When Bonney switches to trumpet – letting off short squiggles that bob and weave together with the sax – an ominous background throb keeps the weird energy high.
The shorter ‘Arid/In Phase’ sets off tactile synth squits and pops, coaxing harmonic cymbal scrapes and low tenor burble. While these two excursions deal in a kind of sustained alien tension, the 19-minute ‘Generating Worlds’ offers an exhilarating release as Sanders dives into a clattering pulse-time drum barrage, with Dunmall letting rip on tenor and Bonney sliding from a sepulchral rumble and roar to a deliciously chewy torrent of squidge. It’s a highly satisfying slice of space-aged free-jazz.
Jazzwise Full Club
- Latest print and digital issues
- Digital archive since 1997
- Download tracks from bonus compilation albums throughout the year
- Reviews Database access
From £9.08 / month
SubscribeJazzwise Digital Club
- Latest digital issues
- Digital archive since 1997
- Download tracks from bonus compilation albums during the year
- Reviews Database access