Louie Belogenis + Shanir Ezra Blumenkranz + Kenny Wollesen = Unbroken

(Tick Tock, 2005)

Tenor saxophonist Louie Belogenis traces his roots to Coltrane and Ayler explicitly, having recorded as a duo with drummer Rashied Ali and in Prima Materia, a band led by Ali that has recorded album-long interpretations of Meditations and Bells. His agenda is the same (transcendence) and his vocabulary is similar (ecstatic), but Belogenis builds to his explosions, rather than exploding right out of the box. In this respect, he resembles Pharoah Sanders most. Backed by bassist Shanir Ezra Blumenkranz and drummer Kenny Wollesen, the rhythm section frequently establishes modal grooves and repeated bass vamps that induce a mild hypnosis before Belogenis’ tenor smears away the pleasantry. Blumenkranz and Wollesen shake bells and tick and chime like a grandfather clock while Belogenis’ tone is alternately hoarse and whispery, high-pitched and urgent and smooth and mystical, with a touch of vibrato. Belogenis has been a sideman for too long: his outstanding trio proves they can play in a tradition established by rarified company.

Jeff Stockton (All About Jazz)

HERE