Material - Hallucination Engine

Should anyone find this review, please do yourself a favor and track down this incredibly amazing recording. I would personally consider it the 'gateway drug' to my current Laswell addiction. It is my humble opinion that this album does / will stand proudly next to Miles Davis' 'In A Silent Way', Underworlds' 'Second Toughest...', Ben Neills' 'Tryptical' and Djivan Gasparyans' 'Moon Shines At Night' (all worth the effort as well).

Almost 300 CD's of Laswell / Laswell-related releases later and I'm still playing catch-up with 'Hallucination Engine'. The magic was in the air during these sessions - dub, ambient, jazz, hiphop, experimental, world - don't let categorizations fool you; they all get the treatment in a mix that is sublimely seamless while simultaneously showcasing the power and strengths of each style. A dizzying gathering of sonic experts are summoned here, and to his immortal credit Mr. Laswell inexplicably captures peak performances from each and every one of them. Nicky Skopelitis, Wayne Shorter, Bernie Worrell, Bootsy Collins, Shankar, Sly Dunbar, Jonas Hellborg, Zakir Hussain, Trilok Gurtu, Aib Dieng etc.

If it's one and only one you need, it is this one.

More on my perspective: hit me at blackholehorizon@yahoo.com

Peace,
-g-