Altrastrata

This is far and away the best thing this group has ever done (many will doubtless disagree) since they have moved from the complex rigidity of their earlier material into an altogether looser, more organic fluidity that retains some of the best of their organizing and compositional ability in an environment that, musically, has space to breath. The inclusion of drummer and amplified, processed percussionist Fabrizio Spera seems central to this new approach, at once improvisational, extended in tonal and rhythmic subtlety, and still locking into clear, coordinated stretches of translucent writing. An important release.