Search - Steve Lacy :: Cry

In some regards, Steve Lacy's The Cry carries on in the vein that Packet or even Vespers first tapped. Each piece is built around a lyric, which is sung by Irene Aebi and originates in poems that Lacy has set to music. The Cry, however, is more concretely rooted, orchestrating poems by Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasrin for six instruments and voice. Lacy's often had one sextet or another behind him, but here the band is free from the forward-driving lean of usual drummer John Betsch, instead relying on Daniel "Topo" Gioia's hand percussion and the ever-present Jean-Jacques Avenel on bass. Rhythms are plenty structured, with their constant proximity to Aebi's voice helping guide the flow, and the horns (played by Lacy on soprano sax and Tina Wrase on soprano, sopranino, and bass clarinet) stand out texturally, rather than as solo vehicles, as on other Lacy releases. Given these caveats, this is not among Lacy's more improvisationally riveting performances. Adapted from a stage performance for CD, the piece lacks consistency, even though Aebi's voice is in its usual fine form and the poetic texts--each leveling a gender critique of Muslim society in Bangladesh--are potent. --Andrew Bartlett