Kelly Rossum & Phill Hey - Conflict! (612 Sides, 2009) ***½

In spirit closer to free jazz musicians Ornette Coleman and Don Cherry, in attitude closer to the famous Dizzy Gillespie and Max Roach duet, this duo with Kelly Rossum on trumpet and Phill Hey on drums is an event full of intense interplay. Starting with Don Cherry' "Brilliant Action", and also covering Monk's "Epistrophy", and Ornette Coleman's "The Sphinx", you cannot question the good taste nor their musical references. The playing is absolutely excellent, and captivating from beginning to end, but like the Gillespie-Roach duet, the entertainment factor prevails over the musical statement or the artistic creativity. The music is direct, at times sensitive, but mostly unrelenting, and quite intense. Lots of passion and great fun.

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Watch a performance of "Marse", one of their own compositions.



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