Perigee

CUR005 - the fourth release in the Metal and Wood project

Hunter Diamond // saxophone, clarinet, singing bowl.

Lucas Gillan // drums

Released May 6th, 2022

The duo unfurls a collection of transcendental folk narratives in their addition to the legacy of freely improvised saxophone and drum duos. PERIGEE (the point in the orbit of the moon when it is closest to the earth) captures them in deep melodic and textural meditations unfolded during in live performance at Chicago's beloved house of creative work, Elastic Arts Foundation.

With close connective listening they swerve nimbly between metered groove and non-pulsed sound canvases. This document shows more of the influence of earth-bound duos like Lloyd/Higgins and McPhee/Drake as opposed to the more stratospheric reachings of Coltrane/Ali or Redman/Blackwell.

The Metal and Wood project is a series of live improvisations between woodwind artist Hunter Diamond and various drummers living in the United States. Captured in different locations in Chicago and New Orleans, these recordings document Diamond’s ongoing interest in the saxophone-drums duo pairing made historic by legendary collaborations between John Coltrane & Rashied Ali, Archie Shepp & Max Roach, Dewey Redman & Ed Blackwell, Charles Lloyd & Billy Higgins, Joe McPhee & Hamid Drake, and many others.

Available through Curio Records (CD) and Bandcamp (CD/digital/streaming)