[Ahmed]: Sama'a (Audition) review a wild, world-spanning act of musical devotion

"In April 2022, the wild and inquisitively wilful British free-jazz keyboardist and composer Pat Thomas was improvising with his eyes shut in the company of his quartet [Ahmed] at Glasgow's Glue Factory. The music was dedicated to the 1950s-70s legacy of the late Art Blakey and Thelonious Monk bassist, oud player and early global-music pioneer Ahmed Abdul-Malik, the inspiration for the group's work."

"Since [Ahmed]'s inception, their collective heat has fused abstract improv and groove music from all over the world: Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk, dub, jungle, electronics, and the 1990s free-improv of Derek Bailey, Lol Coxhill and drummer Steve Noble have all inspired Thomas. Saxophonist Seymour Wright has absorbed the sax vocabulary of Evan Parker and the insights into collective improv and avant-swing of AMM drummer and teacher Eddie Prevost. Eclectic partners Joel Grip (bass) and Antonin Gerbal (drums) power and expand these infectious, volatile energies."

"The Arabic term sama'a loosely translates as meditative listening to music and poetry, taken from Thomas's perspective as a follower of Sufism, and this new set's four tracks manifest that spirit. The opening Ya Annas (Oh, People) joins ghostly split-note sax sounds with graceful bowed-bass figures before turning to a pulsating piano-vamping dance and then a furious melee, while Isma'a (Listen) is a drum'n'bass hook that evolves into hoarsely urgent free-sax improv against exhilaratingly splashy, pummelling piano chords."

Pat Thomas improvised with his eyes shut in April 2022 at Glasgow's Glue Factory alongside his quartet Ahmed, prompting an ecstatic crowd to dance. The quartet dedicates its music to Ahmed Abdul-Malik's 1950s–70s legacy, drawing on Art Blakey and Thelonious Monk influences. The group's sound fuses abstract improvisation and global groove elements—Duke Ellington, Monk, dub, jungle, electronics, and 1990s free-improv. Saxophonist Seymour Wright, bassist Joel Grip and drummer Antonin Gerbal contribute vocabularies from Evan Parker and AMM's Eddie Prevost to power volatile, infectious energies. The set Sama'a comprises four tracks that blend meditative Sufi listening with danceable piano vamps, drum'n'bass hooks, and free-sax mayhem.

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