Editor’s Choice – November 2022

“…there are several new works that Shibe’s timbral explorations work well with; Leith’s Pushing My Thumb Through A Plate is a hazy reverb-ed exploration of tuning-key glissandos, while Feshareki’s Venus / Zohreh builds and builds over several minutes to a richly satisfying ending. Still, I think the works where Shibe’s sound is less upfront showcase his wonderfully naturalistic playing much better. Both Bill Evans’ Peace Piece and two of Chick Corea’s Children’s Songs make the piano-to-guitar journey with ease, but while Meredith Monk and Olivier Messiaen’s choral works here are played with the sort of ease to the phrasing that most guitarists would kill for (and a beautifully recorded sound) … this repertoire is fertile (and incredibly under-explored) territory. I’m keen to see where Shibe goes next, whatever sort of sounds he’s making.” ****

Performance *****      Recording *****

“… The album brings together ten, seemingly disparate composers between whom Shibe traces a journey that’s as unsettling as it is exquisite and profoundly searching, steeped in a kind of weightless wonder…”

“… Here’s another bonkers-at-first-glance, brilliantly curated album from the guitarist Sean Shibe…” ****