Bill Laswell, Baselines

Can’t beat the oldies, but goldies. At least that’s the case with Bill Laswell’s debut as leader, Baselines. Just received this on CD. Had it for donkeys years on vinyl, but I’ve not had my record player rigged up for years so haven’t heard it in far too long. It’s playing loud this very moment and what a wonder it is. Incredibly busy, but somehow also stripped down, contemporary sounding, atonal, full of the threatening bleakness that Material’s early output also delivered (and most especially Laswell’s duet album with Peter Brotzmann, Low Life), continuously eventful, Baselines takes My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts into improvisational territory and emphasises that America is the paranoid, dark continent. The 33 minute album features an incredible complement of players – Michael Beinhorn, Ronald Shannon Jackson, Fred Frith, George Lewis, Daniel Ponce, Martin Bisi (what happened to Jackson and Beinhorn?) Marvellous bass playing from the man himself. Momentarily I’m tempted to observe how much this album promised, given the strange path Laswell’s career followed subsequently, but then this album is enough in itself. An index of possibilities. Likes Miles’ 70′s work, I’m not sure anybody’s taken Laswell’s path any further, that includes Laswell himself.

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Published:
12.09.05 / 5pm
Category:
music