Barry Altschul/3Dom Factor's "Long Tall Sunshine"

 

I was pleasantly surprised last year to hear master drummer Barry Altschul on a Clean Feed release by iconic '60s vocalist Patty Waters, recorded in Houston at a show booked by Nameless Sound. Since then, the other two musicians on the date, Burton Greene and Mario Pavone, have passed, but Altschul, at 78, remains a vital force.

Best known for his '60s and '70s collaborations with Paul Bley, Chick Corea, and Anthony Braxton, Altschul has more recently been a part of the FAB Trio with bassist Joe Fonda (another Braxton familiar) and the late violinist Billy Bang, and an eponymous trio led by saxophonist Jon Irabagon. Since 2012, Altschul's also worked with Fonda and Irabagon under the rubric 3Dom Factor. Recorded in Europe during a 2019 tour and released on Not Two, Long Tall Sunshine -- the title tune is dedicated to and descriptive of a former romantic partner of Alstschul's -- can be seen as a kind of lagniappe and coda to the band's three previous releases (two studio, one live).

Listening to a sax-fronted trio, it's impossible not to think of Rollins or Ornette, but Irabagon (previously heard with Mary Halvorson and Mostly Other People Do the Killing) is equal to the assignment, capable of both the former's thematic invention and the latter's open-ended exploration. Indeed, the title track is a Sonny-esque calypso, while the ballad "Irina" creates a mood of somber contemplation redolent of Blue Note-era Coleman. Windy City native Irabagon tips his hat to his hometown's Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians with circular breathing fireworks on "Be Out S'Cool," and extended techniques elsewhere.

But this is a cooperative group, not a leader-with-sidemen, and the Fonda-Altschul engine room drives the music forward with aggressive energy and relentless swing. They're a veritable volcano on "The 3Dom Factor," an eruption of '60s-style fire music. Fonda wrestles mighty slabs of sound from his instrument, while Altschul actively listens and responds to every musical idea his bandmates put forward -- the most incandescent of free drummers. He gets a lengthy showcase at the top of "Martin's Stew" (I'm guessing a tribute to the late trap master Stu Martin), an excellent example of the level of spontaneous communication and interaction this band is capable of.