REVIEW: Louis Siciliano — Ancient Cosmic Truth (LP)
Few musicians working today can lay claim to the sort of ambition we hear with Louis Siciliano. Keyboardist, pianist, vocalist, and composer, Siciliano’s recent releases testify to his abiding faith in the power of music to make sense of an otherwise senseless life. His latest release Ancient Cosmic Truth continues solidifying his place in the jazz world as one of the genre’s foremost practitioners as well as an artist interested in advancing the form. This ambition, however, never manifests itself as ham-fisted pretension but, instead, an intelligent and always musical reconsideration. He brings his own aesthetic to bear on jazz while also paying appropriate tribute to the past.
URL: https://louissiciliano.com/home
You cannot ignore the fusion aspects of the recording. Siciliano utilizes a larger lineup than his recent releases with Alex Acuna’s percussion joining Randy Brecker;s trumpet and Umberto Muselli’s tenor sax. Claudio Romano serves up the bulk of the album’s drumming from behind his kit while Siciliano offers up everything from straight forward keyboards to analog synths. The synth presence delivers artful contributions to the album opener “Barbara’s Symmetries”.
The predominant effort, however, emerges from the aforementioned accompaniment. “Bambara’s Symmetries” has an appealing pace without ever sounding rushed and the production captures the instruments with full-throated clarity. Intelligence radiates from this and later compositions, but it is notable how the music never flies above the casual listener’s head. “Barbara’s Symmetries” appeals to both the intellect and body in equal measure.
“Translucent Dodecahedron” surges forth built on propulsive rhythms and Siciliano’s appealing synth lines and flourishes. Acuna and Romano are the keys, however, to the composition’s success and the production highlights them accordingly. The song provides yet another example of the focus Siciliano brings to the recording as its relatively brief running time of less than six minutes nonetheless allows Siciliano and his bandmates ample time to flesh out the song’s ideas.
Brass leads much of the way during “The Secret of Mansa”. Compelling rhythms, however, remain one of the album’s strengths and lend a sharp propulsive edge to the performance. The smattering of sound effects beginning the track adds the right touch of ambiance to the proceedings and the aforementioned percussion does an excellent job of mimicking its initial pulse.
The album’s title track stretches out further than its predecessors while returning listeners to familiar territory. Drumming, once again, proves an integral element of the presentation and Siciliano adorns the track with a bevy of complementary synthesizer touches. It runs a bit longer than its immediate predecessors, without question, but it’s clear early on that the wealth of ideas on display merits the extended duration. Louis Siciliano’s Ancient Cosmic Truth does far more than approximate jazz conceits; he uses the form as a vehicle that’s always moving into the future. It is a welcome work for any intelligent listener and especially jazz devotees with a passion for forward thinking compositions. Louis Siciliano’s Ancient Cosmic Truth burns with satisfying ambition that will invite listeners to keep coming back for more and more.
Colin Jordan
