An artful collection of nine pieces composed for drum kit(s) by Wilco drummer Glenn Kotche,
Drumkit Quartets
explores sound and texture within the kit and beyond, including a recited haiku on the marimba-centric "Drumkit Quartet #51," featuring the voice of Yuka Honda (Cibo Matto, Brooklyn Funk Essentials). Performed with expected impeccable musicianship by boundary-pushing avant-garde four-piece So Percussion,
is Kotche's third excursion into the classical realm in less than year, following his recordings of
John Luther Adams: Ilmaq
and
Missy Mazzoli: Vespers for a New Dark Age
, the latter with Lorne Dune and Victoire. Here, the compositions not only explore rhythmic expectation, pitch, timbre, and solo versus unison, but also location, as performances are conspicuously choreographed in stereo. The recording was mixed for release in both stereo and 5.1 surround. ~ Marcy Donelson