Rating:
Genre:
Jazz
Release Date: 10/13/2009
OK, this sounds like a pretty hokey concept:
Pharoah Sanders and some of
Bill Laswell's
Material crew perform along with recordings of a heartbeat, supplied by
Dr. Jean-Louis Zink. Fortunately, it comes off far better in execution than one might expect. First off, the heartbeat itself is sonically treated to be more of a bass pulse, which
Laswell then elaborates on when his bass is in the picture. As might be expected with
Laswell, there are strong elements of
dub throughout, from the sound of the basslines to the way the instruments fade in and out. Besides the heartbeat, which is always present to varying degrees, the main sounds are the guitar and electric sitar of
Nicky Skopelitis and keyboards either by
Jeff Bova or
Laswell.
Pharoah Sanders' playing is excellent, and the album is enjoyable, but one gets the sense that this is
Laswell's project, and
Pharoah just plays on it. If you're looking to start a
Pharoah Sanders collection, begin with something from the
Impulse catalog, like
Karma or
Thembi. As a
Pharoah Sanders record,
With a Heartbeat makes a fine
Bill Laswell album.
~Sean Westergaard, All Music Guide
;)
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