Reviewed by Steve Best

Sha is a musicians' collective led by legendary bassist and now worship leader Dave Markee. This project (and I only have the unmastered copy to go by) draws on a multitude of musical influences to produce four strongly improvisational and lengthy pieces, three recorded live. The percussion-led mantra "No One Like You" opens proceedings. The shortest track at eight minutes, it's nevertheless a pulsating start. The 10 minute "Let My People Go" is centered around a percussion heartbeat motif and soprano Liliana Oliveri, while a "choir" of voices (which appears to be little more than random whoops and hollers) is to my ears more intrusive than a help to this piece, which ultimately ends up sounding too much like the first one to make any real impact. The tour de force, however, is the 30 minute "Hat-sai", inspired by a Thai beach. This is glorious mood music, employing wave sounds combining with the band to stunning, mesmerising effect. And finally the title track - 22 minutes in length, and the least satisfying cut. Spoilt once again by various background distractions, this very slow blues-like sax-led dirge takes a very long time to go nowhere in particular. The problem with improvisation is that it can be very much hit and miss. Where it does work 'Costly Ambience' is spectacular though it must be said that it is a patchy affair and some listeners will be left baffled by it, but top marks for originality and creativity, which puts a smile on the face of God.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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