It isn’t by chance that the duo Vijay Iyer & Rudresh Manhanthappa call their project Raw Materials. Pianist Iyer en alt-saxofonist Manhanthappa find each other in exceptional improvisations with unknown results. That makes a performance of these two musicians, who haven been playing in each other’s bands for years, such an adventure. It’s new jazz at its best. The pair of them, representatives of a new generation of jazzos in New York, weaves their Indian roots through the music. Iyer is a rhythmic jazz pianist who, helped by his feeling for balance, is capable of taking creative turns in his compositions. He honed his skills in the groups of pioneer Steve Coleman. The dynamic Manhanthappa has had a lot of experience as a sideman of a.o. David Murray and Jack DeJohnette, but he also recorded some albums as a leader.
