William Parker
's abiding interest in the "ancient DNA/cultural codex that connects Africa to the Americas" is represented respectively by his use on several tracks of the doson ngoni, an eight-stringed version of the
traditional
Manding hunting guitar, and
the Olmec Group
, a
merengue
quartet of two percussionists, accordion, and alto sax joined by
Dave Sewelson
on saxophones and
Todd Nicholson
on bass. The curious combination of
's high-energy,
Parker
's rattling gourd, and
free jazz
sax sounds strangely clinical in this studio recording, but works well enough when driven forward by a strong bass riff (
"Codex"
). However, it pales into insignificance when compared to
's solo tracks. While his doson ngoni ramblings are pleasant enough, his bass work is magnificent, from the somber take on the
spiritual
"There Is a Balm in Gilead"
to the impassioned
"Compassion Seizes Bed-Stuy"
(first heard on the 1996
Homestead
album of the same name by
and
In Order to Survive
) to the celestial high harmonics of
"Cathedral of Light."
And another epic solo comes as a bonus cut in the form of
"In Case of Accident,"
originally released on 1994 on
's
Centering
imprint and long unavailable. ~ Dan Warburton