Axis of Cavity

Album Review

These British improvisers move forward with the intentions, audacity, and forcefulness of a high-powered rock trio, as they demonstrate a proclivity to mimic each other's movements while exploring various angles amid blustery choruses and gushing crescendos. However, what sets this outing apart from many of the hard-edged, freeform blowing sessions that modernists are accustomed to resides within the band's subliminal rhythmic structures. With this effort, alto saxophonist Simon Rose renders plaintive cries and dirge-like motifs, while bassist Simon Fell and drummer Steve Noble provide a reverberating, at times oscillating undercurrent for the saxophonist's macrobiotic tone poems and abstract discourses. Needless to say, this band is having a blast — and it shows. They convey a profusion of thought-provoking sentiments to coincide with a brooding methodology that signifies an air of elusiveness in concert with a distinct sense of the dynamic. Overall, this 2002 release has quite a bit to offer, especially for those who think they've heard it all.