(Avant-Garde Jazz, Free Jazz) Peter Brotzmann Chicago Tentet - American Landscapes 1 - 2007, FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

American Landscapes 1 and 2 are live dates from 2006. While there have been a few personnel changes since the original line-up—trombonist Hannes Bauer replacing Jeb Bishop and drummer Paal Nilssen-Love replacing Hamid Drake—the core Tentet has remained intact. Both discs are comprised of a single track, clocking in at respectively about 44 and 52 minutes. Both discs are difficult to digest as single entities: attacking them as longer composed/improvised pieces linked by changes allows you better to appreciate the whole.
The first disc begins as a probing orchestral work, until the momentum picks up and the intensity increases. Instruments sound off and the drummers settle into a solid groove marked by Brötzmann's muscular tenor saxophone and the lyrical response of Ken Vandermark's clarinet. All this toe tapping is soon discouraged by the Tentet's group dissonance. Observant fans can pick through the saxophone/vocal calls of Mats Gustafsson, the guitar chords of Fred Lonberg-Holm's cello and the double thunder of drummers Nilssen-Love and Michael Zerang.
All this can be quite overbearing, a la Machine Gun, but Brötzmann's recent compositions allow for quiet resolutions and improvised interludes that pair players up (McPhee's trumpet and Gustafsson's slide saxophone are well coupled). But always there is the power of the bigger group lurking. It bubbles up repeatedly, offering the crowd what they've come for. But tucked inside the thunder are composed lines that sway and sizzle.
Nearly 30 minutes into this first disc, Brötzmann brings one of many cathartic releases forth as everyone lays out except the drummers. The forward motion pauses as cymbals are scraped and snares teased. Bassist Kent Kessler then makes a remark eliciting probing thrusts from saxophone and cello, some forming a duo with Ken Vandermark playing an Evan Parker-like series of chirping notes. The energy music soon returns, to be resolved by Brötzmann's tarogato conjuring thoughts of John Coltrane's "India."
~ Mark Corroto, AllAboutJazz