Another of many fine CMP releases produced by bassist and world music svengali Bill Laswell. This time out, Laswell has recorded the work of the young Korean percussion ensemble SamulNori, which refashions works of traditional Korean origin. The four members provide choral harmonies and play on a variety of instruments, including hourglass drums, gongs, cymbals, and a barrel drum. In between a sacred residence in the Songri Mountains some hours north of Seoul and appearances at the Calgary Winter Olympics and Tokyo's Music Joy Festival, the group was captured live by Laswell in a Brooklyn studio for its exceptional 1988 recording, Record of Changes. The set is taken up by three extended pieces, which lyrically and spiritually touch on transcendence, mourning, the beginnings of civilization, and even depression. A quality set that is consistently provocative and compelling. ~ Stephen Cook
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