"Summit meeting" is a term that has all but fallen out of use in music commentary, but it is applicable to the eponymous debut of Onilu, the trio of Joe Chambers, Kevin Diehl, & Chad Taylor. (Onilu is Yoruba for drummer). For over a half=century, Chambers has brought an incisive compositional sensibility to percussion-centric music; & while most of the eight compositions are credited to Sonic Liberation Front leader Diehl &/or the nearly ubiquitous Taylor, Chambers' gravity centers the proceedings. While there is abundant energy & exhilaration throughout the album, there is a current of palpable solemnity that, arguably, can best be mustered in tandem with an esteemed elder like Chambers. There is a gentle seesawing between pieces rooted in traditional materials like "Nyamaropa," a piece that first appeared on the Nonesuch Explorer classic now title -Zimbabwe: The Soul of Mbira - Traditions of the Shona People-, & recently composed works like Taylor's "Mainz," a piece which Jeff Parker has recorded two notable contrasting versions. Even when the intensity of the material approaches a boil, as on "A Meta Onilu" when all three man a drum kit, each stroke seems prescribed by ancient protocol. With each listening, not only do the layers in every piece vibrate more vividly, but each piece becomes more entwined with the others. -Onilu- is unassumingly profound. It does not shout from the ramparts, nor does it shake its fist at the oppressors. It relays a message that has been passed down through the centuries, despite it being waylaid by the middle passage & repressed through enslavement & its aftermath. It is a message of determination & ultimate conviviality. It is a recording that meets the current moment. Bill Shoemaker, pointofdeparture.org. order -Onilu- on vinyl here 

"This double live LP features recordings from three nights of shows --May 12 & 13, 2023 at 2220 Arts & Archives in Los Angeles & May 15 at The Chapel in San Francisco. It's a breathtaking 90 minutes of three-way interaction, two ascended masters supporting a new but very promising disciple. Collier borrows from the AACM, from Pharoah Sanders, from Charles Gayle, & from bebop (I swear he quotes "Salt Peanuts"), while Parker makes his bass sounds like a guembri, a donso ngoni, a guitar, & someone beating their palms against the inside of a wooden ship's hold, & Hooker's drumming is heavy foot & precise snare, plus some of the most amazing cymbal washes you'll ever hear. This is "free jazz" as ancestral lore being passed down live in the moment. Forty years from now, Isaiah Collier will be teaching it to musicians in their twenties who heard these recordings & sought him out. (From The Ancients, out 1/31 via Eremite)." Read Phil Freeman's Stereogum review in-full & order the vinyl here 

The Ancients --Isaiah Collier, William Hooker, William Parker --2025-01-31 / Onilu --Joe Chambers, Kevin Diehl, Chad Taylor-- 2025-02-07. 

friends of eremite records. the upcoming Natural Information Society concerts:
2024-05-17  FIMAV 40  Victoriaville  Community Ensemble w/ Ari Brown
2024-05-29  The Lab  San Francisco  NIS 4tet
2024-05-30  The Lodge Room  Los Angeles  NIS 4tet w/ Jeff Parker/Avery/Butterss/Johnson IVtet
2024-06-01  The Moody Center  Houston  NIS 4tet

natural information society community ensemble with ari brown -since time is gravity- #1 underground album 2023 -mojo magazine-, 30 best jazz & experimental albums 2023 -pitchfork-, 50 favorite albums 2023 -boston globe-, 50 top releases 2023 -the wire-, 2023 year in review -aquarium drunkard-, #1 album 2023 jazz/improv -magnet magazine-, 20 best experimental albums of 2023 -pop matters-, 2023 favorites -raven sings the blues-. x2LP available eremite.com (you're here). CD-quality digital files at eremite records bandcamp. friends in europe, please visit our partner aguirre records