Live Review: Sun Ra Arkestra

Even though the great Sun Ra's physical persona is no longer with us on Earth (having most likely returned to Saturn when he transcended from our planet in 1993) his legacy and philosophy is carrying on his good work in the most incredible way. Saxophonist Marshall Allen led his 12 cosmic adventurers for the incredibly diverse set, which like the Sun Ra catalogue (including all the pseudonyms) spanned the entire history of jazz music, jumping between the various developmental periods of the movement at a rate so surprising that even the musicians seem delighted with the changes. At 90 years of age, Allen's mere presence on stage is cause for wonder, but there's no evidence that he's holding anything back in his twilight years. Like every member of the group he is a seamless part of the larger sound until it's time to stand out in front for solo blasts of personality. 

The steady jams mostly focused around the piano or the synthesizer at the centre of the melodic vortex with a rhythm section keeping a steady backdrop throughout for the experimental, and sometimes discordant, instrumental flourishes to both snap the listener out of a meditative rhythm and also to remind them of its existence. 

The Arkestra capped off the night with 1974's Space Is The Place, a sprawling soundtrack for exploring the universe that still sounds incredibly futuristic 40 years later, especially with the addition of some kind of recorder/synthesizer mouth instrument which in itself could be from another planet. When the space echo and delay drench the instruments, the more psychedelic elements of the band take the fore and the group's outer space references take on their most literal translations. It's easy to get lost in these jams and that's the whole point. Senses of time and place get seriously distorted and even in the beautiful and unsubtle architecture of the State Theatre it's possible to feel a complete sense of displacement. Despite much encouragement and a standing ovation there's no time for an encore, and its really only then that it becomes apparent how overwhelming the experience has been.