Shaman!

"Ackamoor's sax work - he plays both alto and tenor - remains fiery, recalling Pharoah Sanders and John Coltrane, though this time it's tempered by the lyrical flute of Dr Margaux Simmons, a returning founder of the Pyramids' 1970s lineup. There are muscular funk workouts, like Virgin, studded with vocal declamations, but the album's 76 minutes are a brilliant, shape-shifting matrix".

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"Idris Ackamoor and his lively septet of Afro-futurist voyagers are in high spirits as their millennial comeback gathers pace".

"With the return of original band member Dr Margaux Simmons on flute, the Pyramids are now seven. This alone helps to make this, the third in a sparkling series for Strut, the most variegated and fulfilling of the three. The interplay of flute, alto or tenor sax and Sandra Poindexter's polished violin adds another layer and embellishes the sense of mystery. Six of the nine tracks exceed seven minutes, but to hypnotic rather than meandering effect. The brilliant rhythm section of bass, drums and percussion roots the spiritual elements firmly in Mother Earth, and Bobby Cobb's ever-shifting guitar adds soul, funk, Afrobeat and jazz motifs to the mix ... Idris Ackamoor speaks to us all, literally on the first single chosen, 'When Will I See You Again', with its 'freak storm' bringing death to 'young and old... before their time.' Ostensibly about gun violence, it's eerily relevant, and just one of many stand-out tracks on an intoxicating album".

"Shaman!, the fourth album by a reconstituted Pyramids, is a densely rhythmic stew with an underlying function ... Shaman! rings resolutely with calls for introspection, healing and connection, provisions in short supply for too many of us during these unprecedented times".