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The passing of his father-in-law had a strange effect on Australian drummer Laurence Pike. He and his wife became intrigued by how they experienced the late man’s presence around New South Wales, whether in the ocean, the bush or through animals. Pike says, “It was like his essence had been returned into nature itself.” On that theme, Pike’s last album Prophecy was a response to the hellish bush fires which left his mother country charred.
A genre-busting musician of wide renown, Pike plays in alt-jazz trio Szun Waves, but his solo albums have also drawn acclaim for their blend of rhythm, trance and ritual. Pike had long been toying with a requiem mass for drums, electronics and choir. His father-in-law’s death was thus the spark for this remarkable project.
Featuring the VOX Sydney Philharmonia Choir, The Undreamt-of Centre was recorded in a nineteenth century Gothic church in Sydney. Even those two words, Gothic church, conjure up a sense of historical fantasy, realm crossings and dark majesty. Pike’s music has always been a way for him to bridge the spiritual and earthly zones. With this outing he enters veiled dimensions while weaving a dramatic dance of survival.
There’s a plainsong calmness to opening track Introit, offset by soaring sopranos and mesmerising drumbeats drawn from some shamanic outback. The choir throughout sounds lilting and lulling one moment, trembling and hair-raising the next. The solo singing or group parts can be either deep-toned or performed with a banshee beauty. Orpheus In The Underworld has wrathful drums from Pike, but a wraith-like vocal melody under which bells and singing bowls ring. The dongs and tings of Eastern percussion, that speak of eternity, are a constant feature herein.
Pike’s use of a sampling synthpad is part of his setup. His concept of ‘free’ playing is underlined by a sense of pulse, he thinks in circular shapes and arcs rather than strict linear tempos. Mountains Of The Heart is percussed with nervy knockings and pulsings as the female vocals conjure something truly spectral. Universal Forces brings an eerie procession and incantation, before we’re calmed by the title track’s Buddhist chimes and woody rattles.
Zen-like piano lines and Gregorian vocal rumblings combine on Eurydice, with Requiem Aeternam giving us meditative waftings and jazzy flurries. Finally, amid the hushed contemplation and sombre drones of All Is Distance, the choir’s presence leaves us fairly spooked.
The drums for Pike have always been an instrument of purification. But his mysticism here is generated by choral depictions of heaven, with fiery drumming to protest the eco disasters of his homeland. This album is Pike’s defining achievement, a work that both glorifies the past and haunts the contemporary.
The Undreamt-of Centre (6th September 2024) The Leaf Label
Bandcamp: https://laurencepike.bandcamp.com/album/the-undreamt-of-centre
