The opening sinuous melody on an Arabic-sounding mode beacons the listener into this set of 12 compositions by trombonist Bishop and alto saxophonist Dijkstra like a snake charmer's song. The subsequent entrancing sequence of tunes that follow have enough pretty moments to delight, but also have the bite needed to please the discerning music lover who wants more than warm and fuzzy lyricism.
Bishop and Dijkstra are well-matched companions here. Both can play very convincing inside music, navigating harmonic grids skillfully, but have also had a long standing relationship with the avant-garde, playing in genre-stretching contexts, like the Peter Brötzmann Tenet, for Bishop, and Willem Breuker, for Dijkstra. A more prolific composer than Bishop, the altoist brings the bulk of the compositions to this set, although three are Bishop's and an equal number are credited to the duo. Nonetheless, Bishop's "El Norte" stands out as the most vigorous composition to my ears.
The suave trombone sound that Bishop brings to any setting he's in (his tenure in the Vandermark Five comes to mind) is perfectly matched with Dijkstra's dry, round tone, an almost classical sound. The two together are very pleasant indeed, and go down like ice cream on a hot day. Although tone-wise they're perfect gentlemen, in tunes like the title cut and "Ice," they can get nasty with extended techniques and can juggle very edgy concepts in pieces like "Klopgeest," a minimalist romp on staccato tones, or in the dissonant moments of the otherwise straight-ahead "March", or in the gurgling long tones of "Standpipe."
Compositionally there are many interesting features, not the least of which is the careening counterpoint of "Duo Stuke," the effortless languorous lyricism of "Drainpipe," or the playful sonorities of "Dons." All of the above is delivered by instrumentalists with masterly skills who think as well on their feet as they do with their pens.
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