Machine Gun
(FMP) Used CD $30.00
“The marathon, lung-bursting howl of Peter Brötzmann’s Machine Gun, which the saxophonist self-released on his BRÖ imprint 50 years ago,” remarks Downbeat, “captures the anxiety of a generation grappling with the Vietnam War and civil unrest. The emotional and political complexity it was born from still resonates today…. It’s easy to explain the album’s singular energy as Brötzmann and company harness the era’s ambition of plotting a new path forward. But in the bandleader’s mind, ‘There is no contradiction between creation and destruction. I never thought music was a healing force of the universe. I didn’t agree with Mr. Ayler. But we wanted to change things; we needed a new start…. We were angry. We wanted to do something’…. Machine Gun’s 45-second intro forms one of jazz’s most distinctive mission statements. Evan Parker weaves around the horn section’s staccato blasts, before Han Bennink’s drums blast a nervy military march alongside Peter Kowald’s wildly rumbling bass. The brutality of the album’s remaining 36 minutes exceeds the number of commonly recognized synonyms for ‘violent’…. Ultimately, Machine Gun is the blues for a continent ravaged by a century of internecine warfare, unfathomable crimes against humanity and an uncertain future.” 1990 reissue.