Drummer, composer and producer Sebastian Rochford has been blowing a breath of fresh air through the British jazz scene for years with his band Polar Bear. From a seemingly limitless universe, he allows rock and jazz to merge in an unbridled way. From rough and uncompromising to soulful and melancholic, recorded with a live, free jazz sound of a rawness comparable to James 'Blood' Ulmer. Although
… the experiment is not avoided at all, Peepers sounds more accessible than predecessor Polar Bear (2008), because less use is made of the electronics of Leafcutter John, who now puts more energy into his guitar. Rochford experiments to his heart's content with complicated rhythms that at one time play funky to your heart, at other times move in a jerky and jerky way, and in the quiet passages appear completely restrained and controlled. Tenor saxophonists Pete Wareham (as well as Rochford from Acoustic Ladyland) and Mark Lockheart produce beautiful melodies on the subdued pieces, but can also go wild in a staccato chaos when a thunderous rhythm section demands it from them. Peepers is yet another intense Polar Bear listening experience. (AD)more