Flautist/composer Jamie Baum leads a forward looking septet along with Amir Elsaffar/tp, Douglas Yates/reeds, Chris Komer/frh, Brad Shepik/g, John Escreet/key, Zachary Lober/b and Jeff Hirshfield/dr. If that number doesn’t quite equal seven, the inclusion of guests Sameil Torres/perb, Dan Weiss/tabla and Taylor Haskins/tp for a few songs justify the plus sign for the name of the band.
Musically, the melding of various horns during the ensemble sections works well in both the more energetic and driving pieces such as “Nusrat” and “The Game” but also create a sky of fluffy clouds on “The Meeting” and the ruminating “Sweet Pain/Nusrat.” Baum is quite diplomatic in the fact that she gives plenty of solo space to the whole team, with Elsaffar spotlighted on “Nusrat,” Lober on “The Meeting”, Shepik on “The Game” and Escreet on the driving “Ants and Other Faithful Beings.” The scene gets a bit chaotic on the frisky “Monkeys of Gokarna Forest” and “In A Nutshell” but the reflective “Richie’s Lament” calms things down again with the more contemplative bass clarinet work by Yates. Well crafted and contrived.
Sunnyside Records