Earth Patterns

Description

After more than two years of hiatus, the members of Szun Waves present their third album, Earth Patterns. The trio - consisting of producer Luke Abbott, saxophonist Jack Wyllie (Portico Quartet), and drummer Laurence Pike (Triosk/PVT/Liars) - recorded the album at the end of their European tour in 2018, but it took time to find its shape, as the group had not been in the same room since. The result is a kind of catharsis - a feeling of liberation after a period of forced inaction for almost all the musicians. It's great, and it's powerful. They emerged with hours of music, some inspired by their concerts, most born freshly in the studio itself, ready to be shaped into the group's third album in five years. The visuals surrounding the project, primarily produced by digital artist Dom Harwood, have an equally psychedelic and maximalist approach. Listening closely to this new album, one finds jazz in its undulations, that of Don Cherry, Alice Coltrane, or Sun Ra. But the album also draws inspiration from the British electronic tradition and artists like James Holden, Four Tet, and Nathan Fake. The sense of freedom that emanates from this album recalls Can, Ryuichi Sakamoto, and Liars.