Description
Drummer Whit Dickey, bassist William Parker and pianist Matthew Shipp present a wondrous collective creation, their first studio recording since Shipp's classic 1992 trio debut, Circular Temple. This is also their first assembly since their work together in the revered David S. Ware Quartet. "Everything is melody." - Whit Dickey on the mantra of the music.
In the late 1980s / early '90s, pianist Matthew Shipp and drummer Whit Dickey were young musicians taking part in the cultural ferment happening on New York City's Lower East Side, a place where free jazz, avant-rock and all manner of creative arts and political causes were colliding and combining to further the area's legacy of progressive action. William Parker - although just 2 years older than Dickey - had been part of that progressive action since the mid-70s, and was already a world traveller. As Shipp has noted on numerous occasions, a key aim in his moving to NYC was to make music with Parker. The sound and sensibility of that vintage East Village milieu informed Shipp's very first trio album, the striking Circular Temple. Although the three have worked together in important configurations in the decades since (vitally, in the revered David S. Ware Quartet), they are now releasing their first trio studio album together since that original classic: Village Mothership, its title in homage to the rich environment that fed the artistic development of these artists. This brand new work together re-ignites this trio's profound creative pulse, with 30 years of devotion to the music since then clearly evident.
LP edition includes a download card with the 2 additional tracks not on the LP, plus an insert with extensive liner notes by Steven Joerg and featuring vintage photographs by Sylvia Plachy, then staff photographer at the Village Voice.
Press:
"Each of the six pieces is through-improvised, the playing is fresh and contemporary, and, despite the gloomy track titles, outgoing and warm-hearted. Shipp combines jazz expressionism with impressionist moods, Parker and Dickey are intuitive melodic improvisers and all three delve into the past with a playful touch." - **** Financial Times
