GATEWAY: GATEWAY

A very interesting Jazz album from three extraordinary talents. Abercrombie on guitar, DeJohnette on drums and Holland on bass. This is quite different from the Rypdal, DeJohnette and Vitous album also released by ECM. Abercrombie and Rypdal have very different styles and that changes the overall sound between the two.

"Gateway" begins with three fairly laid back tunes that are quite intricate as the bass, guitar and drums seem to do their own thing. "Waiting" puts the spotlight on Holland as he leads the way with some cymbals added in. "May Dance" is where we get some passion from Abercrombie after 5 minutes then Holland solos once again. "Unshielded Desire" sounds so good mainly because up until now it's been fairly mellow and intricate. This song is very dynamic with DeJohnette offering up a great drum intro as Abercrombie comes in soloing over top. This continues as the guitar lights it up while the drums pound away. "Jamala" is mellow with cymbals, guitar and bass. "Sorcery I" will challenge your mind. After all that's gone before which I must say requires some patience,we are hit with an experimental intro before the guitar and drums start to wield their might before 2 minutes. It settles to a Jazzy mode a minute later then Abercrombie starts to set the soundscape ablaze. My God ! He's ripping it up 5 1/2 minutes in. I'm laughing at this section because of the joy I feel. DeJohnette not to be left out starts to dominte before 9 1/2 minutes to the end. I don't have an I-Pod yet but if I did this 11 minute tour de force would be on it. Killer track.

A special album that is an honour to own. 4 solid stars.