Sunwatchers: Illegal Moves

Richard Gehr on May 6, 2019
Sunwatchers: Illegal Moves

Few bands translate the howling euphoria of ‘60s free jazz into a rockish context better than Sunwatchers. The Brooklyn quartet’s fourth album, Illegal Moves, gallops and grooves like nobody’s all-instrumental business. Their raucous electric spirit is rooted in great global music, with tentacles extending toward Asia and Africa. (In addition to guitar, Jim McHugh plays the electric phin, a Southeast Asian lute wired for party starting). Highlights include “Beautiful Crystals,” a Terry Riley-influenced romp through the techno garage; “Everybody Play,” a brash blast of spiritual jazz à la Albert Ayler or Pharaoh Sanders; and Alice Coltrane’s “Ptah, the El Daoud,” a stately protest-march song. Worth the price of admission for Scott Lenhardt’s Mad-influenced cover depiction of consumer capitalism in revolt.