Masami Tomihisa (Masaaki) and Jim White sat down and knocked out these pieces over three days. Just electric piano and drums. That's it.

You-On New Side (12XU)

That pithy description hardly begins to tell the tale. Somehow this duo found a rhythmic language to build upon, and these pieces dance, meander and fly with an unexpected grace. I've never heard a duo in this configuration, but I'm impressed by the range of ideas and sounds here.

I suppose the easiest way to categorize this would be jazz, but neither member is really a jazz artist. This album pretty much transcends genre arguments, though its improvisational nature probably does get back to jazz eventually. I dunno. I've never heard anything like this, and the way Tomihisa and White communicate through their playing is truly astonishing.

This is new in many ways, and all of them are good. The musical language spoken on this set is entirely new to me, and it's pretty thrilling to hear. Throwing stuff up against the wall is often an interesting experience. Finding something new and then making it shine like this is a true accomplishment. Wild, crazy and fully awesome.

Jon Worley