Sun Ra Arkestra @ Band on the Wall, Manchester, 2 Apr
With their sequin-ridden costumes winking under the lights, the thoroughly seasoned Sun Ra Arkestra file onstage with an air of immense calm, shortly before breaking into a barrage of disjointed blips and tumbling jazz grooves.
It’s difficult to compare them to any other act in existence today: the group take pride in being more of a visceral experience than anything else. With over 60 years of musical experimentation under their belt, the Arkestra’s unique brand of space-age free jazz has endured through every modern music trend imaginable, only to blossom and become increasingly complex. The idea of forward-thinking evolution is apparent in every piece during this intimate Band on The Wall performance – all of which, such as vibrant half-century-old romp Interplanetary Music, revolve around the late Sun Ra’s fascination with all things cosmic.
The eponymous bandleader’s successor, 92-year-old maestro Marshall Allen, conducts with a wizened hand, using the other to tinker with a variety of instruments. He steals the show with relative ease through a smooth, natural domination of the saxophone, grasping centre stage at the show’s climax to lead an erratic rendition of When You Wish Upon A Star.
Other members are permitted to shine (literally and figuratively) through frenzied solos, spurred on by nods from their awe-stricken bandmates: Fred Adams produces wail after wail of fiery sentiment, wielding his trumpet as he dips from stage to audience; Danny Ray Thompson throws himself between the trill of flute and a tinkling bed of piano; Tara Middleton provides a robust yet tenderly soulful vocal. Each passionate solo is met with an eruption of applause, before the baton is passed on to another jazz veteran.
Throughout the night, the Arkestra seem oblivious to any audience presence, basking only in the wildly improvised nature of their collective groove: perhaps it is this sense of musical infatuation that renders their performance such an utterly unforgettable one.