May 2- 8, 2002

musicpicks

Jim Black's AlasNoAxis

Jazz

Not long ago drummer Jim Black appeared, along with bassist Skuli Sverrisson, on Late Show with David Letterman, backing poet-singer Laurie Anderson. The effect was a slight incongruity; their subversion was too pellucid, somehow, under CBS stage-light glare. Yet even in this semi-precious sub-pop context, Black and Sverrisson spark a quiet revolution. Their rhythmic undercurrents are like plate tectonics: constantly shifting, variously glacial or volcanic. See for instance the duo's sharp work in Pachora and Yeah No, both with clarinetist/saxophonist Chris Speed. Or catch Black's AlasNoAxis, which features these three, plus Icelandic guitarist Hilmar Jensson. Splay (Winter & Winter), the group's brand-new sophomore release, blends shoegazer sound-wash with the freer sort of not-quite-free-jazz; think Paul Motian via Kevin Shields. The tunes are thumbnail-simple, and often developed in straightforward fashion. Their spell is a sort of frosty atmosphere: neither "jazz" nor "rock" per se, but shimmering with the best elements of both.

Wed., May 8, 7 p.m., $12, Tritone, 1508 South St., 215-545-0475.

—Nate Chinen

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