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Tony Oxley — The New World
(Discus Music 165CD, 2023, CD / DL)

by Peter Thelen, Published 2024-01-04

The New World Cover art

A drummer’s drummer, composer, and electronic musician in jazz circles, Tony Oxley has been playing with the best of Britain’s jazz players longer than most of us have been alive. He played with John McLaughlin, Tomasz Stanko, Cecil Taylor, John Surman, Amthony Braxton, Georgie Fame, Michael Gibbs, Don Sugarcane Harris, Paul Bley, Bill Dixon, and many many more; in fact a better question might be: Who hasn’t Tony Oxley played with? The answer might be a shorter list. Born in June 1938, the sad news is that Oxley passed away on December 26th, 2023 at the age of 85, so the review of this excellent album will be somewhat overshadowed by his untimely passing. The New World contains six of Oxley’s percussion compositions, untitled save the numbers one through six, explorative pieces that offer a glimpse into what magic can be spun using percussion alone. For his part as a player, Oxley handles percussion and electronics, while Stefan Hölker handles acoustic percussion. The sessions took place in 2022 in Viersen, Germany, engineered by Karsten Lehl and Bernd Ludger Wagner. The opener, “Composition 1,” sets the stage for all of the pieces that follow, a beautiful scenic journey accompanied by mysterious sounds, occasional light drum hits, rapid swells of cymbals and gongs, bowed bits and clicks that remain ever interesting but always gentle so as not to disturb the listener’s peace. Oxley’s masterful refinement of sounds and shadows amid swirling bursts of creative energy offer a unique perspective; these are not merely ‘drum solos’ or even enhanced solos, but compositions that deserve the most unique attention to every detail. As the listener gets lost inside one piece, the next one eases forward almost without notice, before one even realizes it you are on that sprawling twelve-minute panorama that is “Composition 6.” With The New World, Oxley produced some engaging sound sculptures that are at once satisfying and magically haunting on a number of levels.

Filed under: New releases, 2023 releases

Related artist(s): Tony Oxley

More info
http://discusmusic.bandcamp.com/album/the-new-world-165cd-2023

 

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