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Mopomoso featuring Evan Parker Trio at The Vortex in London
Drummer Roger Turner slams a disembodied cymbal back and forth across his floor tom like a particularly ferocious game of air hockey
The Vortex Jazz club
London, England
November 16, 2008
Fair enough, it's billed as "Mopomoso featuring Evan Parker Trio." But still, a five-hour bill culminating in less than twenty minutes from the man himself would try the stamina of all but the most committed free improv devotees.
Thankfully, with the reputation of the Mopomoso (apparently standing—and I don't think it's a joke— for "MOdernism POst MOdernism SO what?") night firmly established after nearly two decades, it's precisely those free jazz devotees that fill the Vortex tonight.
Of the five (count 'em) support acts, Swift Are The Winds Of Life, though nowhere near as bad as their moniker might imply, are fairly unremarkable despite some strong percussive work from Charlie Collins. And Furt, purveyors of dystopian electronic noisescapes, are disappointing—categorically not because they aren't PROPER JAZZ, but simply because their unrelenting glitch spasms fall short of ground trodden by earlier travellers—from Throbbing Gristle to Autechre.
On a more positive note, Satoko Fukuda (violin) and the wonderful 
Steve Beresford
pianoTrombonist Alan Tomlinson's trio is a very different but equally arresting proposition, his intense, at times humorous playing matched by a post-punk savagery from boilersuited guitarist Dave Tucker, formerly of The Fall. Equally no-holds-barred is drummer Roger Turner, at one point slamming a disembodied cymbal back and forth across his floor tom like a particularly ferocious game of air hockey, at other times attacking his kit with metal chains and even a dining fork.
The clear pre-Parker highlight, however, is the penultimate act, comprising English saxophonist 
John Butcher
saxophoneb.1954
Gino Robair
percussion
Han Bennink
drumsb.1942
Then, finally, it's time for Parker, joined by regular double bassist John Edwards and, on acoustic guitar, Mopomoso co-founder 
John Russell
guitar
1954 - 2021
He's in a relatively mellow mood, showcasing the side heard in his work with Robert Wyatt, for instance, more than with 
Peter Brötzmann
woodwinds
1941 - 2023
Visit Evan Parker at All About Jazz.
Visit Mopomoso on the web.
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