09 February 2009
Vortex Jazz
Andy Robson

Thomson is perhaps best known as Antonio Forcione's bass man. This debut, though, finds him exploring his African experiences and revealing his talents on wider instrumentation. Ubi was the aged father of Thomson's teacher in Africa, and Thomson himself learned to play flute and thumb piano under Ubi's tree. So as you can imagine, the release is full of swaying African rhythms, gentle morphings from light to shade and an ever-present sense of insistent dace. Crass as it is to use such labellings, the whole fits snugly into a world roots vision, and fans of the likes of Oregon will find much to enjoy in its mediation of African (Tanzanian) vibes through a largely Western sensibility: ‘Waiting For The Rain', for example, movingly mixes European instrumentation (violin, viola, ethereal vocalisations) with an African percussive patina. You may have to be a fan of bowed saw though to get the most from this track. It's all affectionately and effectively put together, and it's obviously a project close to Thomson's heart. However, it odes plough a much-visited furrow and indeed may almost be too intimate in scale to appeal to a wider audience. Which doesn't stop it being eminently listenable of course.