May 5-11, 2005

musicpicks

Tyft

Jazz

The only obvious common feature shared by New York and Iceland being harsh winters, you'd think musicians from either place would look to warmer climes for collaborators. But the joint ventures of drummer Jim Black and guitarist Hilmar Jensson have generated some of the more intriguing new-jazz experiments of the last few years. The Jensson-led Tyft is both more minimalist and more abrasive than Black's AlasNoAxis, which blends acoustic and electronic instruments in a fusion of Sigur Rís and Ornette Coleman. Tyft employs a similar configuration (the trio is completed by altoist Andrew D'Angelo), but leans further toward texture and noise. The more serene, melodic moments, most thanks to Jensson's lovely acoustic guitar, emerge from a sea of scrapes, buzzes, rattles and hums. When D'Angelo's upper-register blowing gives way to a whooshing that evokes wind across the tundra, it seems that wintry landscapes can provide a fertile common ground.

Thu., May 5, 8 p.m., $10-$12, Slought Foundation, 4017 Walnut St., 215-222-9050.

—Shaun Brady