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REVIEWS: STRIPSEARCH Stripsearch back to artists page Discography • Audio • Tour Dates • Reviews Released Aug 5, 2003! More reviews will be posted soon! On paper, it's hard to predict where three musicians of such diverse background might find common ground. On disc, the answer becomes obvious: hip-hop rhythm mainstay Michael Elizondo, Wallflowers alumnus Michael Ward, and monster drummer Josh Freese connect in the realm of free, jazz-inflected improvisation. (Saxophonist Jason Freese assumes a supportive guest role on several tracks.) Throughout their debut album they play with a volatile blend of muscle and flexibility. Freese's technique, equal parts dexterity and force, sets the tone; even on tracks like "Orange Fragile," a slow-motion study of shadows and space, there's a sense that at any second his filmy cymbal rolls will erupt into a fury of brutal rhythm. And when he does unleash the demons, as on an extended single-stroke assault that briefly demolishes the loopy jazz vibe on "The Mongoose," the effect is almost terrifying. As if to temper these episodes, the other musicians play more minimally; Ward concentrates on textures and abstractions, and Elizondo often anchors the sound with a feathery, dark drone. The trio's time frames range from long, as in the first several tracks, which melt together like lava slithering across a varied landscape, to rudely abrupt, as in "The Real Deal," a minute-long frenzy of ferocious intensity. Yet Stripsearch makes itself felt as a single entity, in which almost every musical gesture is a risk, and almost every risk pays off. – Review by Robert L. Doerschuk, allmusic.com –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Click here to order Stripsearch's Stripsearch direct from Magna Carta! For more info click here. |
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