John Zorn and Bill Laswell Team Up for First Duo Album, “The Cleansing”

John Zorn and Bill Laswell: The CleansingAlthough they’ve been musical compatriots since the late ’70s, John Zorn and Bill Laswell have teamed up for their first recorded duo project. The Cleansing features the artists on just also saxophone and bass, playing and building off of each other. Besides being their first duo project, it’s also a special moment where they returned to form after the pandemic.

“Recorded in early 2021, near the end of the year’s pandemic lockdown, it marks the first time Zorn had touched the saxophone in over fifteen months,” the album description explains. “Laswell had spent most of the year locked in his apartment. Something special was happening that day—and after the session Laswell felt rejuvenated—as if all the toxins and poisons had left his body. Soulful and essential, The Cleansing is an historic meeting.”

The six songs take their names from famous artists and occultists. Though the recording is just two instruments, Laswell helps to vary the texture by using a variety of effects. Zorn and Laswell create wide open atmospheres as well as dissonant landscapes.

The Cleansing is available now through Amazon on CD and digital download.

The Cleansing Track List:

  1. Brion Gysin
  2. Aleister Crowley
  3. Austin Osman Spare
  4. William Burroughs
  5. Alejandro Jodorowsky
  6. The Cleansing

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