The Root of Things is a perfect modern jazz record that redefines the boundaries of this timeless music. Shipp and company (Michael Bisio on bass and Whit Dickey on drums) creatively meld the elements of classic Afro-American forms with brilliant cohesion, whether playing in or out of time. Much jazz of the last 30 years is mired by the "museum jazz" aesthetic that pays homage to a presumably dead art form, or relies heavily straight rhythm. Thanks to Dickey's inventive meter this music manages to look backwards and forwards at the same time.

The Root of Things begins with a loping motif with loose drumming and ponderous bass. It's a solemn and searching piece, rich with Sunday morning reflection. Shipp stirs things into a mellow frenzy by adding more discordant ideas as each man lackadaisically follows each other around the tune, with the drums occupying the free spectrum for the duration. "Jazz It" comes next, sounding quite similar to mid-60's Andrew Hill in its harmonic exploration and rhythmic push. Walking bass and chiming chord suspension lay the foundation over which Dickey interjects moments of fragmented but swinging pulse. Shipp makes his way down the keyboard to guttural tone clusters before launching a rollicking solo that attempts to destroy the song's meter.

"Pulse Code" starts with a solo emphasizing broken time and is a fantastic showcase for Dickey's rhythmic conception; he is eventually joined by his comrades for a quick musical row that ends nearly before it starts. Closing track "Solid Circuit" finds Shipp in meditative solo mode for almost four minutes before the band joins him for a final dose of millennial post bop. His approach changes almost immediately as bass and drums coerce rolling passages and stop time antics from this journeyman pianist. He briefly returns to a more thoughtful mind state but is once again awakened by the rhythm section's hijinx. It's a freewheeling and spirited conclusion to an amazing record, and proof (if any was needed) that jazz continues to possess an astonishingly creative life force.