John Butcher, Matthew Shipp

The first meeting of two masters of improvised music. Concentrated solo pieces from each before an uncompromising duo.
When Matthew Shipp was invited to London's Cafe Oto for a residency in 2010 he immediately asked to play with John Butcher, perhaps not the most obvious choice of collaborator but one that proved inspired. Although they generally work in very different areas of improvised music, both players share an intensity of focus and pugnacious individualism that heightened rather than hindered their ability to work together. This is not a polite meeting in the middle but a genuine synthesis in which both remain resolutely themselves but both are transformed.

The concert was recorded for broadcast on Jazz on 3. For this CD edition, the recording has been meticulously re-mixed by John Butcher and expertly mastered by Rupert Clervaux to bring out the full physical force of the performance.