The Ninth Room

Paul Steinbeck's new book on Art Ensemble of Chicago got me listening to these legends again. "The Ninth Room" is my favorite kind of avant-garde jazz: still swinging, lots of "sound effects," and playful use of atonal and skronk elements. Steinbeck's book also challengs the assumptions we often make about Art Ensemble of Chicago's listener base being predominantly or only white. They were always connected to the community in the South Side and, as Steinbeck persuasively shows in his book, their European following in places like France often perceived the group through disturbing racial lines or stereotypes. Anywho, when I saw a performance by another avant-garde jazz artist affiliated with AACM, I'd say most of his following were African-Americans.