Evan Parker

Milestone reissue, one of the greatest singular sonic gestures of the 20th century.. Soprano saxophone solos recorded in 1986 in St. Paul's Church, Oxford by the late Michael Gerzon
"Six years after Six of One, Evan Parker proposed another solo album. The Snake Decides features the man, his soprano saxophone, and a gifted sound engineer in Michael Gerzon, to whom Parker pays tribute in the liner notes to the CD reissue (a reissue that sticks to the original album, no bonus material on this one). Six of One is hard to beat, especially since at the time (1980) it represented a thunderous introduction to Parker's solo playing. But The Snake Decides manages to raise the ante, if only slightly. Parker's circular breathing has grown more flexible and frantic. One pictures a mad snake charmer, playing multiple melodies at once to make the snakes stretch into different directions and move in interlocking patterns. In "Buriden's Ass" and "Haine's Last Tape," the number of notes per minute hits a peak. But Parker's music has never been about keeping score. The flurry is necessary to mesmerize the listener, to hypnotize him, to make everything else within earshot fade away. All that remains is this kaleidoscope of multiphonics. The title track, 20-minutes long, can seem like something of an ordeal, but the absence of a pause or break in the flow of notes obliterates time. But the best, most impressive pieces are the shorter ones; they are brighter, friskier. Recommended. (Amg)