Ahleuchatistas long ago proved to be a ferocious live act, so ‘The Summer We Went West [and East] – Live 2006’ is a release that needed to happen.

With Trevor Dunn and Danny Piechocki now backing him, Shane Parish returns to his Ahleuchatistas re-invigorated and ‘Expansion’ more than justifies the return of this creatively nonconformist band.

For anyone who’s had their fill of the sea shanty craze, don’t quit it until you’ve had a chance to hear Shane Parish’s evocative take on these nautical songs. You don’t even have to like sea shanties to really enjoy ‘Liverpool.’

There’s so much ingenuity and telepathy on Tatsuya Nakatani and Shane Parish’s ‘Interactivity,’ it’s easy to forget this is merely an acoustic guitar and some percussion.

Wendy Eisenberg and Shane Parish’s ‘Nervous Systems’ is just two masters of experimental guitar in an impromptu meeting of the minds.