Recording: Battle Trance

Artist: Battle Trance

Song: Palace of Wind I

Recorded at Array Space (Music Gallery's "Departures" series), September 5, 2014.

Battle Trance - Palace of Wind I

Following a test run, The Music Gallery has formalized their off-site series (now christened "Departures") under the co-curatorship of Tad Michalak, employing some of the DIY verve be brings to his work with Burn Down the Capital/Feast In The East. Further instalments are being planned, but nothing's announced yet.

The night's headliners were a new quintet of tenor saxophones convened by Travis Laplante, pushing their instruments into mesmerizing territory. With no PA, the only other sound in the room was the patter of rain on the roof overhead. That was soon obliterated by the rising wall of circular breathing, very phase-y in the manner of Steve Reich. That slowly transformed into several other textures (from quiet drones to Ayler-ish spirit-honking), constantly morphing for the length of the fifty-minute set until the group finally stopped to breathe, holding — holding — the rapt silence of the room, with just the patter of rain on the roof overhead for more than a full minute before lowering their instruments to accept the crowd's applause.