Matthew Shipp, piano
Whit Dickey, drums
Michael Bisio, bass
He might be older and wiser, but Matthew Shipp has not mellowed with age. A galvanizing force among the heirs to jazz’s avant-garde movement of the 1960s, the pianist has spent the past quarter century building a vast, rolling musical universe. He has done more than just about any other figure of his generation to uphold and advance a jazz aesthetic built upon free improvisation.
“…it’s the way he [Matthew Shipp] sprints, cuts, and spins that demands rapt attention. Blocking out heavy chords, rippling through insanely complex but cleanly articulated runs and arpeggios, and plucking strings inside the piano, his hands move both independently and in complete synchronicity. Similarly he and Bisio and Dickey offer up unique takes on the harmonies and rhythms while linking their imaginations into one vision.” – DR Absolute Sound
“Shipp’s trio walloped the packed Vortex with two richly rewarding, high energy sets which wove obliquely in and out of the standards repertoire.”
Geoff Winston, London Jazz Blogspot
“Stellar interplay characterizes the trio program, with Bisio’s cleanly articulated arco a muscular thrum, maintaining a constant counterpoint to Shipp’s idiosyncratic mix of sunshine and thunder. Dickey adds a further layer of complexity, with his intricate cymbal patterns overlaying his pulsing polyrhythms.”
John Sharpe, All About Jazz