Not only are the British coming, but make no mistake, The Comet Is Coming (TCIC) too. The spiritual music made by John and Alice Coltrane and Pharaoh Sanders in the late ‘60s is surely an inspiration for the UK jazz trio, and, like those iconic figures. TCIC is on the same Impulse! label, pushing the envelope into the 21st century with spiritual jazz that owes as much to the ‘60s sound as it does to futuristic music like that from Bladerunner. This is the Impulse! debut of King Shabaka (Shabaka Hutchings) on saxophone/bass clarinet, Danalogue (Dan Leavers) on keys/synth, and Betamax (Max Hallett) on drums for their album Trust In The Lifeforce Of The Deep Mystery.
Glean these titles: “Because The End Is Really The Beginning,” “Birth of Creation,” “The Universe Wakes Up,” and “Unity.” With drums, synthesizers and saxophones alone, you’re brought back to works like Pharoah Sanders’ The Creator Has a Master Plan. Some of the space excursions of Sun Ra certainly come to mind as well, especially when in “Blood Of The Past,” where guest vocalist Kate Tempest speaks cosmically as if to summon the spirits of William Blake, Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking. It’s “out there” but most of it is remarkably accessible, especially the raucous “Summon the Fire.” It’s transcendent music that relies on electronics, notably heavy use of reverb and tape delay, but Hutchings is a fiery sax player who blows aggressively while safeguarding the melody. Even the players refer to their music as “glimpses of this lifeforce energy during our music-induced trances.” One can only envision the visuals that could accompany the TCIC’s soundtrack – astral planes, neon seas, gliding objects, and celestial beings. Much of it is edgy but there are soaring, gorgeous soundscapes, especially in the opening “Because the End Is Really the Beginning” and the closing “The Universe Wakes Up.” It plays beautifully with adventurous, heavy and free flowing combustible passages framed by two calm bookends, as if moving from a peaceful lagoon into a stormy ocean and then back again into a safe harbor.
The Comet Is Coming formed in London in 2013 when Shabaka, sax in hand, appeared stage-side during a show by Danalogue and Betamax’s drums and synth duo Soccer96, and began jamming with them. A member of Sons of Kemet and Shabaka and the Ancestors, Hutchings was already one of the brightest stars on the UK jazz scene. Yet, TCIC is a shared project. All music is co-written with Danalogue and Betamax mixing and producing. They had an EP Prophecy (2015), and a debut album that was the Mercury nominee, Channel the Spirits (2016). They will be touring the U.S. for the first time, beginning this month.
This likely goes without saying, but these three musicians are deep cats. For example, here is a taste of their thinking – “There is an incredible amount of historical evidence that suggests the control of a single leader leads to corruption and is not to the benefit of the community,” says Danalogue. “There is a trust we have in each other – to do what is best for the group.”
It should really come as no big surprise that sci-fi and cosmic music is making a resurgence. We hear it in the states too in the music of Kamasi Washington, Thundercat, Flying Lotus and others. It’s fertile ground for experimentation. TCIC tracks themselves are an interesting and exciting mix, all tied together by the trio’s uncompromising sound. Somehow it seems coherent and well-planned amidst the free-flowing exchanges.
TCIC will admit to a shared love for Sun Ra, Hendrix, the LA scene alluded to above, and bands like the Mahavishnu Orchestra (which they are closer to than a lyrical band like Weather Report). his and the accompanying tour will expose them to wider audiences. Rather than conclude conventionally, let’s give you The Comet Is Coming Manifesto.
Trust in the Lifeforce of the Deep Mystery.
The Comet is Coming to destroy illusions. It will manifest new realities, perceptions, levels of awareness and abilities to coexist. It is a musical expression forged in the deep mystery. It is the overcoming of fear, the embracing of chaos, the peripheral sight that we might summon the fire.
Through the transcendent experience of music, we reconnect with the energy of the Lifeforce in hope of manifesting higher realities in new constructs. Because the end is only really the beginning.
Photo by Oliver Schrage
