Matthew Shipp
Invisible Touch at Taktlos Zürich

 ★★★★

Matthew Shipp has a gigantic catalog. One that I hope to fully delve into eventually, but I saw this release from this year and wondered what direction he was headed in currently. And I can truly say that this is some of the best work I've heard from him, there's so many layers to this. 

This stream of consciousness style is something very compelling and also makes it quite difficult to sort this into individual tracks. Even through this method Shipp explores many genres and stylistic variations within the piano as an instrument. There's moments when you clearly hear influences from Duke Ellington to Bud Powell or even minimalists such as Philip Glass or Terry Riley. 

Many times these classical elements are paired with treating some keys like a separate percussive instrument, which I've only heard a few times before. The most clear example is in Andrew Hill's album Compulsion!!!!!. 

The performance begins to feel more solemn and mysterious towards the end, causing the listener to pay more attention. But I think this truly shows the importance of Shipp's playing now more thane ever. His expansion is sure to inspire others for years to come. 

Favorite Song: Blue in Orion

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