Son of Sisyphus

Bill Dixon's Soul Note exploration is typically thoughtful, introverted and often downbeat. Two duets on piano with bassist Mario Pavone ("Silences For Jack Moore" and "Sumi-E") both put as much emphasis on space as on the sounds. The other pieces find Dixon's tonal distortions on the trumpet often joined by moaning long tones from the tuba of John Buckingham, the competing ideas of Pavone and the often-fiery drums of Laurence Cook. "Schema V1-88" uses a single sound as the basis for the group improvisation while other pieces feature the musicians reacting quite freely to each other. These lyrical explorations move forward without a pulse and, once one gets used to the "style" (or lack of), they reward repeated listenings.