Guitarist Marc Ribot tend to look at familiar musical landscapes from unusual angles. His Cubanos Postizos band took traditional Cuban son in a decidedly non- traditional direction while his Ceramic Dog trio puts the punk into jazz. (Or is that vice versa?)
This time he has the classic sound of 1970s Philadelphia soul in his sights, viewed through the prism of Ornette Coleman’s groundbreaking experiments with funk in the early 1980s.
The result is a boisterous romp of an album, like a disco recording from some dystopian, alternative universe. Live in Tokyo refashions Philly classics such as The Hustle in the company of Coleman alumni, bassist Jamaaladeen Tacuma and drummer Calvin Weston, plus rising New York guitarist Mary Halvorson and a live string section for that lush, pre-digital disco sound.
