Reviews

Guitarist Ant Law has plenty of prestigious session-playing experience, and is an innovator who has his own tuning system. The central relationship here is between Law and Chillingworth, an admirer of Mark Turner who shares the American’s ability to generate intensity without hectoring. The album feels like a split between a coolly relaxed regular-jazz feel and a more rhythmically edgy contemporary approach. Law sounds distantly Metheny-like on the fast Kanda Jhati, unleashing fast, climbing figures and fluent double time off a staccato theme. The soft chording and diffuse melody of For Silver and the twisting sax theme of Laurvin Glaslowe spark remarkable improvisations that sideline the tunes, but the jazz-swinging Stract has Chillingworth in Lee Konitz mood, and A Bar In Nigeria is racing postbop that showcases the soloists and the A-list rhythm section alike. This would be an exciting band to hear live.

John Fordham – The Guardian

Bustling power, judiciously harnessed with elegance and poise, characterises the eight originals and one jazz classic that make up this album, on which the intelligent, cogent guitar playing of the fluent, eloquent Law is set against the fierce saxophones of Michael Chillingworth and the thoughtful but slyly robust piano playing of John Turville. It is the sheer class of the rhythm section however, that is the icing on the cake: whether driving the band through the pleasantly jerky, hard-edged opener, ‘Kanda Jhati’, building the surge beneath ‘Laurvin Glaslowe’ or ticking briskly through the Coltrane composition, Farmer and Maddren are the heartbeat and breath of a vigorous but subtle group sound perfectly calibrated to serve the needs of Law’s often tricksy pieces, which are rhythmically complex enough to stretch both performers and listeners, but are, at the same time, bright, punchy and memorable.

Chris Parker – London Jazz News

Mixing a virtuosic technique which takes as much from rock shredders as it does from past masters of jazz guitar, Entanglement gives an interesting and exciting selection of tracks which show off a stunning array of styles and techniques. The album feels like more of a whole band effort at times more than a solo release, with guitars being used heavily for rhythm playing as well as lead lines.

Ant Law doesn’t hog the spotlight at all on various tracks other members of his group step up to the plate and take the lead. The way in which the album allows the whole band to stretch their musical legs through melodies and solos without keeping too much focus on Ant Law’s guitar gives it a much more rounded scope than is often the case with solo releases. When Ant Law is the focus, however, the playing is fantastic, a great young jazz guitar talent.

Nick Webb