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William Parker/Hamid Drake
Piercing The Veil
2001 – AUM Fidelity

Origin: New York City
Style: Free Jazz

Louisiana born and Chicago based percussionist Hamid Drake may not have hit the prime of his life just yet, but he may have found his niche with New York bassist William Parker.

This introduction to the pairing of Drake and New York jazz bassist William Parker could not have come at a better time in Parker’s career. Coming off of the quartet high on O’Neal’s Porch and gaining some ground on Thirsty Ear’s “Blue Series” with progressive musicians like Matthew Shipp collaborating, his room for experimentalism has not been taken lightly.

Drake was brought on during the Painter’s Spring sessions to help collaborate on the song “Flash.” It was then when Parker saw the potential for further work between the two musicians.

On Piercing The Veil, the duo minimizes their depth and expand their scope of the musical landscape. Their free jazz progressiveness should be respected if not awed. At least that’s what critics thought. Hell even Alternative Press had a gushing experience, although mildly written, at the time of its release. (http://www.aumfidelity.com/17review.htm).

One thing you will notice when “Black Cherry” starts us out is the thickness the two sound, almost making us feel like there are two people playing. Drake colors the palette while Parker draws the lines, building off of each other. And Parker’s technique will remind you that he has been properly trained by peers (not classically trained, Parker studied with Jimmy Garrison, Richard David, and Wilbur Ware – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Parker_%28musician%29). This is important to note because in order to break the rules you have to know the rules.

But Parker and Drake no more break them as much as bending them. From Parker’s “acro” bow styling in “Chatima” and meditative African percussive number “Heavenly Walk” to the Turkish folk styling of “Nur Al Anwar” the two do a sort of trade-off on prominent and purpose. Sometimes Drake is left alone to show off his modern percussive styles “Chaung Tzu’s Drea,” while other times, the two see how far they can twist a traditional jazz song, “Loom Song.”

Building traditional with the unconventional is what this duo does best, and this not only may be the intro to their work, but a great place to start in the vast catalog of William Parker.

Cross-Reference: Albert Ayler, Cecil Taylor, Joseph Jarman