Binker ∞ Moses – Journey To The Mountain Of Forever
(Gearbox)

When this album came into the shop, I definitely judged it by it's cover. Unabashedly, it looks like the kind of new age / modern folk hogwash, or wildery progressive rock record that I would never want to listen to. Nothing about it's cover told me what is actually stored on the 2 vinyl LP's; some seriously slamming, and wonderfully performed, jazz! This is the second album from this UK duo, drummer Moses Boyd and tenor saxophonist, Binker Golding, and they've definitely landed a spot in my conscious with this release. The duo performs together exclusively on record one, and subvert my expectations again. Moses, utilizing rock solid and funky drum rhythms and tempos, creates hard and heavy, yet seductive and groovy, foundations for Binker to blow out some wonderfully rich post-bop. The two perform tremendously well together, and every track is fun and palpably full of life. They employ a refreshing amount of resistance while letting the tracks flow on their own without pushing too hard. Sometimes they just summon screechy chaos from the get-go. There's definitely no battling between the instruments, just harmony. Disc 2 however, is where the band lets their free-freak flags fly a bit more, featuring numerous guest musicians too. Most notably is the legendary free-jazz saxophonist Evan Parker. From here on out the music turns more Anthony Davis or Pharaoh Sanders than Sonny Rollins, and the sonic landscape is filled with much more diverse sounds, such as harp, tabla's and trumpet. I definitely recommend this album highly and it feels good to give a positive report on a new jazz LP! (VII)
Check out a track here.