The Lamp And The Star

The Lamp And The Star marks American drummer Alex Cline’s first leader date, augmenting his Quartet Music outfit with some of ECM’s most artful session musicians. Sounding more like a chamber suite than a jazz album, its movements allow us to fill in the mysteries of titles like “A Blue Robe In The Distance” and “Accepting The Chalice” with stories of our own. Not forcing these associations is the band’s strength. Violin and cello heighten the experience in “Emerald Light” and elsewhere, while the voice of Aina Kemanis ensures this cup of musical tea tastes enigmatic to the last drop.