Disc of the month - The Art Ensemble of Chicago - We are on the Edge (2019)

 

I’ve been an AEOC scholar for decades and an avid collector of their 70+ discs, as well.

After attending at a Roscoe Mitchell solo-concert in Padua, in 2018, I felt I already owned enough of their music... that’s why when I saw this 4-LPs box at my local record-shop I sort-of felt bored, thinking about a merely commercial sampler.

... but some days ago, a fellow collector randomly told me he bought a 50th tribute box-set of AEOC...

I immediately called my records pusher and Yes! he still had a last copy left, which I put on hold...

When I unwrapped the gorgeous red-box and put disc 1 on Garrardzilla’s platter, after few notes, I appreciated the superb music played by the 2/5th surviving members of the group, supported by a cohort of great musicians.

Must admit that, thanking the presence of violin, viola and cello on some tracks, the music sounds more “European” avant-garde than free-jazz, a bit Stravinsky-flavored at moments.

Nonetheless, how would you define a 4 lps/8 sides played in a row avidly and blissfully?

A masterpiece?

Maybe more... it’s a statement, a next-generation effort where Roscoe Mitchell’s sax is like a compass for the stars.

The music flows, masterfully served by an awesome recording both on studio and Live in concert at Ann Arbor, MI.

Try to locate your copy, folks... you won’t regret!