Mephista – “Entomological Reflections ” – [Tzadik]

A partly composed, partly improvised affair, featuring an impeccable trio of veteran NY players. Sylvie Courvoisier is all over and under and inside her piano, generating jazzy licks, scrapes, bangs, you name it. Susie Ibarra taps small percussions and crashes big drums. Ikue Mori produces subtle, colorful textures from her laptop. Ibarra’s percussive reactions to Courvoisier’s piano surprises are particularly good. For her part, Mori shows how well tasteful electronics can work with acoustic instruments, and she often acts as a sort of musical glue, chattering away, holding everything together. Track 12 has an intriguing dark feel, which sets it apart from the other tracks. This music is full of strong, creative female energy. A release in Tzadik’s excellent “Oracles” series, which showcases today’s forward-thinking female composer/musicians.