This live duo recording of Globe Unity Orchestra founder Alexander von Schlippenbach and Japanese piano player Aki Takase is a performance that moves in several unexpected directions. It should be noted that both musicians are playing the same piano, a technique that brings the players together more closely than if they were assigned their own instrument. It is this creative intimacy that makes this recording work so well, with both Schlippenbach and Takase sounding completely at ease with each other as they hammer and glide through a diverse programme of material. The set begins with ‘Jackhammer’, one of Schlippenbach's demanding, yet rewarding, compositions where the intricacies of his freejazz keyboard are harmoniously explored over a duration of 13plus minutes. Less expected, however, are energetic renditions of works by Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus and Frank Zappa, all of which fit together seamlessly as the performance flows along. Occasionally sounding like a player piano that has been switched on and let loose, Schlippenbach and Takase end with ‘The Morlocks’, a mechanical roller coaster ride that takes their audience with them. From beginning to end, this is a delight.