Archie Shepp, A Sea of Faces (side A)

The centerpiece of 1975's A Sea of Faces is "Hipnosis", a 26-minute long Grachan Moncur composition that fills side A—given the groove density to fit 26 minutes, the low-end on the bass is impressive.  Most of the track is a repeating rhythm from Cameron Brown's bass and Dave Burrell's piano.  Inexplicably, the random maraca playing is louder than Beaver Harris's typically excellent drumming.  Only at the end does the piece break out of its steady state, when Burrell's playing becomes free and chaotic and moves in the direction of Shepp's loose workouts over the top.  The B-side starts with two pieces with vocals that are less crazed than Blasé and less gospel-tinged than The Cry of My People.  The album ends with a more classic jazz tune in "Lookin' for Someone to Love".  The cover painting that wraps around the gatefold ties more to the populist bent of Shepp's early-70s work than to this album, where he moves back toward a jazz idiom.