(Free Jazz) [CD] The Thing (Mats Gustafsson, Ingebrigt Haker Flaten, Paal Nilssen-Love) - Again - 2018, FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Exact Audio Copy V1.3 from 2. September 2016
EAC extraction logfile from 22. August 2018, 10:30
The Thing / Again
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        1  |  0:00.00 | 21:07.46 |         0    |    95070
        2  | 21:07.46 |  8:40.35 |     95071    |   134105
        3  | 29:48.06 |  9:11.24 |    134106    |   175454
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     Filename C:\The Thing (2018) - Again\The Thing (2018) - Again.wav
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==== Log checksum 2F965FAF4EF1ECD6F706942966792BDD268A672F997BDCDB3509EA052A0B78AE ====

REM GENRE Jazz
REM DATE 2018
REM DISCID 25092303
REM COMMENT "ExactAudioCopy v1.3"
PERFORMER "The Thing"
TITLE "Again"
REM COMPOSER ""
FILE "The Thing (2018) - Again.flac" WAVE
  TRACK 01 AUDIO
    TITLE "Sur Face"
    PERFORMER "The Thing"
    REM COMPOSER ""
    INDEX 01 00:00:00
  TRACK 02 AUDIO
    TITLE "Decision in Paradise"
    PERFORMER "The Thing"
    REM COMPOSER ""
    INDEX 01 21:07:46
  TRACK 03 AUDIO
    TITLE "Vicky Di"
    PERFORMER "The Thing"
    REM COMPOSER ""
    INDEX 00 29:48:05
    INDEX 01 29:48:06

Recorded July 2nd and 3rd, 2017 at Studio Paradiso, Oslo

Again? Yes, The Scandinavian power trio revisits its roots on Again, the American fiery-spiritual free jazz of the sixties, as explored on its first albums - the self-titled debut album from 2001 (titled, as the trio name, after Don Cherry composition from Where is Brooklyn?(Blue Note, 1969)) and the second one with Joe McPhee, She Knows (Both released on sax player Mats Gustafsson’s short-lived Crazy Wisdom label). The Thing leave behind the brutal and immediate garage-active jazz pieces and covers of rock anthems, and relies on its extensive experience on free-improv meetings. Even the instrumentation of Again reflects on The Thing roots. Gustafsson sticks to tenor and soprano saxes (no bass sax, as featured on Fire!’s recent The Hands, not even a one blow on the baritone sax) and Håker-Flaten plays most of the time the double bass. Again fits perfectly the length of the vintage format of a vinyl, only 38-minutes long. Again, Fire!’s bass player, Johan Berthling, produced this album, after producing The Thing’s last studio album, Shake! (Trost/ The Thing, 2015). But, naturally, The Thing, as a trio and and its three musicians, are wiser and more experienced. Gustafsson, Håker-Flaten and Nilssen-Love do have an encyclopedic knowledge about the history of free jazz and Nordic jazz, but none of them is going to rely on this glorious past. All of them are ambitious and bold composers, leading their own groups, some even orchestra-size outfits. Gustafsson’s 21-minutes “Sur Face” demonstrates this approach. This suite is still charged with the familiar, uncompromising, tons energy of The Thing, but is developed with no sense of urgency. Gustafsson’s sonic spectrum is more varied, moving freely from familiar, charismatic-rawl Ayler-ian blows to much more emotional, lyrical tones, sometimes even exploring delicate and surprising melodic, chamber jazz textures. Håker-Flaten and Nilssen-Love suggest an open yet massive, rhythmic support that embraces Gustafsson shifting themes and tones. The cover of tenor sax player Frank Lowe “Decision in Paradise” (taken from Lowe’s album with the same title, Soul Note, 1974, featuring Don Cherry), offers an obvious connection to The Thing’s past, as well as to jazz spiritual legacy. Lowe has played with Sun Ra and with Alice Coltrane, and Gustafsson updates their spiritual calling to a call to action, telling his audiences that we all taking part in a fight against global stupidity. The Thing already covered Lowe’s composition, “For Real” on She Knows with McPhee. Again, McPhee joins The Thing with his pocket trumpet, and he and Gustafsson interpret beautifully the balladic lines of Lowe and Cherry, but patiently transform the original theme into an intense and fierce eruption. Håker-Flaten’s “Vicky Di” suggests a link to The Thing’s recent past. Håker-Flaten takes the lead, playing a mean, nervous electric bass, Gustafsson alternates between the tenor and the rarely played soprano saxes, and Nilssen-Love, as usual, builds layers upon layers of of nuanced rhythmic storms, references even Brazilian music. Mid-piece, Håker-Flaten’s turns his bass into a generator of distorted, feedback-laden noises. This solo bass marks a return, again, to The Thing’s unmistakable, ecstatic rhythmic grind, leaving you breathless, but crying for more, much more from this right stuff. ~ eyal hareuveni, freejazzblog.org
Wait for it. Wait. At some point during a performance or recording by the trio known as The Thing, the band attempts to rip your face off, beginning with your ears. It's been that way since they were founded in 2000. The Swedish/Norwegian free jazz/garage band have become a kind of jazz/punk royalty, cutting huge swaths into jazz conventions without ignoring jazz traditions. Yeah, their apparent contradictory nature is part of the attraction. Again is their 20th release, and it follows a 2015 recording with James Blood Ulmer, Baby Talk (Live At Molde International Jazz Festival 2015) (The Thing Records, 2017). The trio of saxophonist Mats Gustafsson, bassist Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, and drummer Paal Nilssen-Love balances straight trio outings with collaborations with Neneh Cherry, Thurston Moore, Barry Guy, Jim O'Rourke, Ken Vandermark, and Otomo Yoshihide. That tradition began with one of their first recordings, She Knows... (Crazy Wisdom, 2001) with guest Joe McPhee. McPhee is back for one track here, Frank Lowe's "Decision In Paradise." Like the original 1984 recording with Don Cherry, McPhee plays pocket trumpet. They maintain the bluesy nature of the composition, but also disassemble the melody only to rebuild it with a muscular robustness. Of the remaining two tracks, "Sur Face" was penned by Gustafsson and "Vicky Di" by Håker Flaten. The saxophonist's lengthy piece, a twenty-one-plus minutes, fluctuates between a barroom clearing attack and pacific passages. The trio chart a course through quiet/loud and loud/quiet, moving from energy jazz to heavy rock and back. Håker Flaten's "Vicky Di" has the bassist switching to electric to match the force of Nilssen-Love's skins and Gustafsson's tenor. This allows him to switch his guitar to thrash and, as the MC5 say, "kick out the jams motherf#ckers." ~ mark corroto, allaboutjazz.com

Mats Gustafsson - soprano and tenor saxophone
Ingebrigt Håker Flaten - acoustic and electric bass
Paal Nilssen-Love - drums and percussion
Special guest on track 2: Joe McPhee - pocket trumpet