HI-Fi News

Ingar Zach is a young percussionist from Oslo, which is where he recorded his duet with guitarist Derek Bailey. From the first moment - with Bailey’s slow-tempo chordings, like an excerpt from a melody which has lain on the sea bed for millennia - it’s a magic night. Recording is upfront (when the musicians speak, their voices are faint, implying close, unrealistic miking), and the palette of sounds from Bailey’s amplified guitar and Zach’s extended kit is packed with elements. The Bailey solo «Warts’n all» is «The Inch Worm» pegged out on a dissection slab, all quivering pink viscera and shiny metal pins. The climatic 17m «Real Flying» is well named.

This release contains some of the most impressive Bailey guitar to have energed since the albums (Salsoro, Viper, Arcana, Mirakle) masterminded by John Zorn. This recording requires no adjustment to the improv 'aesthetics' of confusion and poor sound; it’s a killer.