Review : Christian Burchard's world music fusion band Embryo has
long been a running project of nearly inconceivable depth and breadth.
This 1979 live album brings together recordings from an Asian and
Indian tour featuring the Embryo sextet with saxophonist Edgar Hofmann, guitarist Jay Zier, bassist Uwe Mullrich, Friedemann Josch on flutes, Michael Wehemeyer on harmonium, and Burchard on marimbas, along with special guest and Embryo alumnus Charlie Mariano on soprano saxophone. What made this tour special was the addition of the Karnataka College of Percussion, a 12-piece Indian percussion ensemble, to the proceedings led by T.A.S. Mani. The result is nothing less than the total synthesis of Embryo's
otherworldly sound, crashing, loping, and improvising around set
rhythmic and harmonic patters, augmented by the sophistication of this
brilliant percussion ensemble who never, ever, overplays. There are
four pieces here, the most satisfying of which is the opener, "Cello, Cello"
-- and that could be because it is just such a surprise, as everything
here rocks! The level of improvisation here is so intimate, so
symbiotic as to be literally almost scary that this kind of
communication can take place between musicians -- many of whom have
never played together before. Literally, these four selections will
astonish you at the very least, and perhaps even take your breath away. ~Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
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