Hellborg/Lane/Selvaganesh/Umashankar "Icon"

To those already familiar with Jonas Hellborg, it'll come as no surprise that the bassist/composer's newest disc, "Icon", confounds expectations and defies easy categorization. Nonetheless, "Icon" is an eye-opener even for the seasoned Hellborg aficionado. For this CD, recorded in London, Memphis, and New York, Jonas gathered the lineup behind 2000's stellar Good People in Times of Evil - hard rock guitarist Shawn Lane and Indian percussionist V. Selvaganesh (Kanjeera and Konokol) - and has also added vocalist V. Umamahesh and percussionist V. Umashankar (Ghatam and Konokol) to the mix. The collaboration results in some of most lively, visceral and transcendent music you'll hear this year. The furious tempos, rapid-fire percussion, and dexterous bass and guitar lines would be worth a listen on their own merits, but the music on "Icon" is so much more than simply a display of virtuosity.