The trio Sifters brings together three players out on the edge of what’s acceptable in jazz: drummer/label owner Kate Gentile, saxophonist Jeremy Viner, and guitarist Marc Ducret, whose work with free jazz giant Tim Berne has become legendary. So it’s no surprise that the band’s self-titled debut packs some serious punch. Opening cut “Flail Maneuvers” unfolds like a lesson in how to improvise freely without collapsing into a heap of debris. Gentile’s tune provides just enough structure for everybody to find a corner with room to move, and while all three are going full bore, they’re also listening to each other, controlling the explosion instead of surrendering to it. Thus when the tide turns toward the blues, as with Ducret’s “Tarot,” or to exploratory post rock, as with Gentile’s “90 Cairns,” or to abstract balladry, as with Viner’s “Tenons,” the group never reels out of control, sticking to the vision. Gentile’s epic “Innominate” is the record’s grand statement – moving from quiet menace to noisemongering joy, it’s a masterclass on how a group of great musicians can play what their hearts demand but still speak with one voice.
