Medeski, Martin And Wood, Dome Concert Hall, Brighton, May 24
4:58pm Monday 26th May 2008
Brighton Festival's Manic Organic theme started with happy hardcore rave tunes being played on The Dome's 72 year old pipe organ and ended with this New York jazz trio holding what appeared to be an organ convention on stage.
John Medeski looked like a mad professor surrounded by all manner of keyboards.
Although The Dome's 3,000 pipes only got a token blast, Medeski's fingers flew around his treasure trove of instruments as he fused their earthy groans with Chris Wood's mesmerising bass rhythms and drummer Billy Martin's mind-blowingly intricate beats.
Legendary percussionist Airo Moreira added to their weird and wonderful world of sound with everything from bird song to gutteral chants.
What started as wide and spacious free jazz fused into an incredibly tight and powerful performance which saw these fantastic musicians fully demonstrate the depth of their musical genius.