Entrance (a.k.a. Guy Blakeslee) just released the great Promises EP and is gearing up for a full-length early next year via Thrill Jockey. In the meantime, he’ll be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Readers, you’re in for some really good stuff.
Blakeslee: Black Woman is an album of ecstatic music recorded in 1969 by free-jazz guitarist Sonny Sharrock, prominently featuring his wife Linda Sharrock’s intense vocalizations. The LP’s climax, “Portrait Of Linda In Three Colors, All Black,” is truly one of the most thrilling and exalted pieces of music I’ve ever heard. It begins with a wordless vocal duet to introduce a majestic major scale, transforming into an insane trumpet solo that sounds like a spiritual awakening, an ego-shattering exploration that sets the tone for Linda to first imitate and then go beyond with unbridled abandon. As the guitar’s manic crescendos transcend all rhythmic structure in savage bursts of melodic madness, Linda’s voice rises to a fever-pitch of blissful horn-like shrieking and moaning, hyperventilating and melting down in an orgasmic release as the drummer sounds like he’s obliterating his kit out of pure love, without any sticks. I’ve been listening to this record a lot on long drives, but the most perfect experience I’ve had with it so far was listening to the whole album in headphones while working out on an “elliptical” machine at my local gym. I believe with an open mind anyone could hear the beauty in this record, but it’s certainly not for the faint of heart! It’s most enjoyable if the listener can surrender and go along for the wild ride. Check out the climactic final song here.
