Cut is the first release by bassist Daniel Studer, reedist Sebastian Strinning, and drummer Daniel Weber in the studio. It consists of two tracks, or cuts, "Cut&Cue" and "Sea&Seed".

But then again, cut does not necessarily refer to the individual selections. Instead, it also points to the ways that each is segmented by predetermined structures and improvisation, not unlike John Zorn's game pieces. That reading would also account for the "cue" in the first track title, and maybe even the seed, or germinal idea, in the second. And one might even be able to tie that reading into the crest of a wave sectioning the sea, to complete the symbolism of the second title. Though, in light of the liner notes, that reading might be a step too far.

No matter, Cut captures the trio playing the bare bones of free jazz, stripped of most of its melodic flesh and exposing the underlying nervous energy. One hears elements of forward-driving rhythm from the sometimes-rhythm section of Weber and Studer. Even in these passages, it can be a challenge to decipher who is making which clattery run or gravelly rustles (chains, too, in "Sea&Seed"). Strinning often joins in the rummaging, as well, as when he releases soft airy ribbons through clattering of keys. But then he bites down and out come the howls and contortions and the occasional ecstatic blast. And, often enough, he entangles his lines, whether strained screeches or motoric trills with the scrapes and jangles of Studer and Weber.

All of this sounds remarkably close-miked. Strinning's breath comes through, as do the grains of Weber's tools of abrasion, and the fibers of Studer's bass strings. Keeping in mind this basic aesthetic world, the music is surprisingly varied and remarkably tight. A jam (for lack of a better term) abruptly intensifies, only to just as suddenly go silent, before the next motif takes over. At times, Studer and Weber combine into an oddly polyrhythmic, but ever-scratchy latticing. Studer even walks his bass, however briefly and subtly, leading to a tangled swinging session. This sets a notable contrast with the plodding doom back beat overlain with striated reeds that draw the album to its conclusion.

A well-cut but wonderfully unpolished and overlooked gem from 2025.