The Comet Is Coming // Trust in the Lifeforce of the Deep Mystery

The Comet Is Coming

Trust in the Lifeforce of the Deep Mystery

Impulse!

4.5/5 Stars

I want to live in this record. There's something primordial and visceral about it that ends up being true magic at work here. Plenty of people have tried to channel the spirit of Pharoah Sanders, Alice Coltrane, and other pioneering jazz artists over the years. This London trio not only succeeds in capturing that lightning in a nine-track bottle, but also may be just reinventing it for a new generation. The band is made up of saxophonist "King Shabaka," keyboardist "Danalogue," and drummer "Betamax" (or Shabaka Hutchings, Dan Leavers, and Max Hallett if you want to take the mystery out of it). There's a slow burn in the first few tracks leading up to one of the best recordings of the year in "Summon The Fire," a hypnotic, pulsating trip that will get your mind swirling — the animated video by artist RUFFMERCY makes the perfect companion piece too. Things just continue to heat up from there, as EDM intermingles with acid jazz and spoken word artist Kate Tempest for a psychedelic journey. Thankfully, there are calming sections on the album's latter half like "Unity," providing for a narrative listening experience that's more effective than any lyrics could be. — Nick Warren