Black Forest/Black Sea's last album, "Forcefields & Constellations," took some time to grow on me. I was a huge fan of their debut, but for some reason wasn't immediately pulled into its clutches. Repeated listens brought me around, however. "Radiant Symmetry," their latest release on the Last Visible Dog imprint, is a collection of live recordings taken from their recent European tour. "Radiant Symmetry" took no time at all to grab me. After one listen, I was awestruck at the disjointed beauty of these pieces. Recorded from Tampere to Bologna, this is a stunning like at their travels through the Old World.

The list of collaborators on "Radiant Symmetry" reads like an improvising all-star team. Jan Anderz?n, Stefano Pilia, Markus M?ki, Daniel Padden, and many others all contribute their various talents to this sprawling, beautiful disc. But everything is centered around Jeffrey Alexander and Miriam Goldberg. Their music is reaching that point where they know each other so well, that their improvisations together sound like aural gold. "Radiant Symmetry" is the perfect document showcasing their abilities to craft stunning, drifting masterpieces.

"Radiant Symmetry" begins with haunting screeches recorded in Glasgow, Scotland with members of the always impressive, Volcano the Bear. The best moments here happen when Daniel Padden's clarinet wailing weaves in and out of Alexander's crunching guitar. It's a noisy, chaotic mess that somehow manages to pull itself together. Goldberg's beautiful cello playing is like the persistent mother watching over her young ducklings, not allowing them to stray too far. It's a piece that feels like it could fall apart at any second, but she keeps roping everyone back in and keeping them close.

It should come as no surprise that the two short pieces recorded in Tampere, Finland rank as some of my favorites from this excellent record. Joined by Kemialliset Yst?v?t members, Jan Anderz?n, Markus M?ki, and Merja Kokkonen (all of whom have released brilliant solo records recently in addition to the latest KY masterpiece), BF/BS explore a more whimsical side. The first of the two tracks from Tampere features excellent keyboard playing from Anderz?n. The plucky acoustic guitar provides a nice constrast to the keyboard moans. Xylophone tones dot the I's and cross the T's, accenting the proceedings perfectly. Seeing as 2/3 of the group on these recordings is made up of current KY members, it should come as no surprise that these tracks come off sounding more like KY than BF/BS (hail to acronyms!). Kokkonen also plays a musical saw which adds a ghostly presence which is quite beautiful. She also plays clarinet on the second track from Tampere which feels like a traditional gypsy song. Easily two of the best pieces on this album, and the first track from Tampere in particularly stops the show in its tracks.

All of these wonderful recordings, however, pale in comparison to the pieces from Bologna and Stoke-on-Trent. On the piece from Bologna, which is my favorite on the album, BF/BS are joined by Italian sound artist extraordinaire, Stefano Pilia. I've sung the praises of Pilia before in this rag, but his contributions on this track make it stand out. Golberg and Alexander do their thing, skating circles around each other, but Pilia is like the kamikaze pilot crashing their party. But, being the gracious hosts they are, they invite him, give him a guitar and record what happens. The end result is a stunning and haunting gem

The latter closes the album and features the brilliant accompaniment of Harry Sumnall on electric tamoura, harmonium, and percussion. Alexander and Goldberg are in full flight here, showcasing their impressive ability to construct seemingly complex arrangements with only a guitar and cello. Sumnall's added instrumentation highlights how good these two are at composing beautiful, hypnotic music on the fly. Goldberg's voice bleeds through the mix, stirring every range of emotion. This is brilliant. Sumnall's harmonium playing works wonderfully with the cello and together they lay a sturdy, droning foundation for Alexander to sprinkle his magic over. This is a dynamic listening experience and is the best possible way to close this amazing album.

It took me no time at all to get into "Radiant Symmetry." Ever since it arrived in my mailbox, I haven't been able to take it out of the CD player. It's a stunning achievment and shows how cohesive improvisation can be. These two troubadors travelled to the ends of Europe and these are the results. We should all be so lucky to get so much out of our journeys. "Radiant Symmetry" is the best travel diary anyone could ever offer. 9/10 -- Brad Rose (25 May, 2005)