Now, after more than four jazz-star decades that have seen him considered one of Sonny Rollins’ heirs (and a collaborator with originals from Bill Frisell and Elvin Jones to Esperanza Spalding), Lovano’s Trio Tapestry explore delicate distillations of the musical resources that all three members have often individually set loose with warp-speed intensity. He grew up on his saxophonist father’s stories of what it felt like to jam with John Coltrane, but also in a Sicilian-American household that revered the operatic tenor legend Enrico Caruso – experiences that nurtured an appreciation of virtuosity and the subtleties of nuance and timbre. ![]() The Cleveland-raised saxophonist Joe Lovano comes from a jazz tradition that extols blowing a lot of notes, fast and loud. It’s a long way from the psychedelic odysseys and ambient drones of his Porcupine Tree days: not prog, but always progress. There’s even a jokey dig at Wilson’s own “super-deluxe box sets”. None other than Elton John pops up for electro-thumper Personal Shopper’s wonderfully deadpan narrated list of absurdly inessential purchases (“diamond cufflinks”, “smart watch”, “volcanic ash soap”). The Future Bites dashes from 12 Things I Forgot’s epic pop to the more melancholy Man of the People and Count of Unease. Subjects from nostalgia to social media self-regard come giftwrapped in sizzling melodies as he funnels the influence of his beloved Trevor Horn into postmodern electronic pop-funk, adding sub-bass, thoughtfulness, wit and humour. Wilson always was a sharp songwriter and has adeptly channelled what could be unwieldy concepts into bite-size, polished pop. A general theme of “how the human brain has evolved in the internet era” has led him to reflect on consumerism, algorithms, web-era shopping and a general discourse on how technology and marketing have transformed modern life. The 51-year old’s sixth solo album is the one-time guitar virtuoso’s least guitar-oriented collection yet. ![]() Wilson has rebuffed their cries that it’s “not prog” by emphasising an artist’s prerogative to develop and challenge audience expectations. Much to the chagrin of hardcore elements of his fanbase, the one-time “king of progressive rock” is exploring dance, electronica and contemporary pop these days.
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