J. A. Deane – Nomad
22 October, 2009
CD, Les Disques VICTO, 1995
Canadian percussionist and sampler-wrangling J.A. Deane is perhaps most notable for six years in the touring ensemble of Jon Hassell. He was present on some of the latter’s best records, including Flash of the Spirit and The Surgeon of the Night Sky Cures Dead Things With the Power of Sound (love it!), and it’s no surprise that a couple of the tracks here show some of that Fourth World chittering jungle or desert ambience. Richard Horowitz, another name in this area, is also present on a track or two, and you’ll also swoon to this if you’re a Steve Roach or Steve Shehan enthusiast. This was all apparently composed for the choreographer Colleen Mulvihill, and as usual with these sorts of pieces one has no real idea how her dancers actually moved to this.
1. Wolfrun/Priests (10:24)
2. Standing Wave (8:03)
3. Algebao (3:20)
4. Liquid Time (7:29)
5. Last Supper (9:45)
6. Dark Heart (9:35)
7. Thread of Life (9:53)
Thanks for this, I’ve a longtime fan of Jon Hassell, but never got to hear this album. It’s pretty wonderful! You compare it to Steve Roach and Steve Shehan, but to these ears it’s infinitely more challenging that the new-age stuff they peddle.