"Ocean Of Storms is an exciting album of improvised music by four of the most celebrated titans of contemporary sonic innovation. The five pieces on the album take their titles from geographic features of Earth’s Moon.
Incorporating elements of modern composition, the music is both otherworldly and grounded in the American roots musics of jazz and blues.
The recording grew out of the long-time musical collaboration of Henry Kaiser and Wadada Leo Smith. The two first met forty years ago when Wadada wrote a guitar duet for Kaiser and Eugene Chadbourne which appeared on Kaiser’s first solo album, Ice Death.
Over a twenty year period, the pair made five albums together, most notably their very popular Yo Miles! project that celebrated and explored the mid-70’s electric music of Miles Davis, as well as other collaborative albums with Thomas Mapfumo, Bill Laswell, and others.
Last year they decided that it was time to work again and enlisted their old pal William Winant, the master American New Music percussionist, and Tania Chen, the astounding British pianist.
A day at legendary Fantasy Studios in Berkeley resulted in this work, one that runs the gamut from whisper-quiet acoustic music at the beginning to a terrifying maelstrom of electric intensity on the final track. Ocean of Storms is a state-of-the-art recording and performance of 21st century improvisation.
Elegance, humor, mystery, awe, and surprise intertwine in a cosmic musical braid created by four master musicians."
1. Bay of Honor 11:53
2. Sea of Crisis 13:14
3. Lake of Time 11:17
4. Montes Spitzbergen 12:14
5. Al-Kwarizimi 13:56
1. 12-string acoustic guitar + piano + trumpet + percussion
2. 13-string acoustic harp guitar + piano + trumpet + percussion
3. piano + trumpet
4. electric baritone guitar + percussion
5. electric guitar + piano + trumpet + percussion
Tania Chen - piano
Henry Kaiser - guitar
Wadada Leo Smith - trumpet
Willian Winant - percussion
