Here’s a pretty impressive debut album from triple threat Chris Klaxton who plays trumpet, writes the material and arranges the music as well on this mature, accessible yet clever release. The band is small enough for flexibility, yet large enough for sme full sounds, consisting of Klaxton with Mark Small/sax, Mike Effenberger/Rhodes, Kendall Moore/tb, Tim Jago/g, Josh Allen/b, Michael Piolet/dr and Taylor O’Donnell/voc. The rhythm team keeps up a semi-rock beat with a sense of swing most of the time, while the drum and Rhodes patterns on “Billions” create a foundation for Klaxton’s horn making the composition a wholistic unit, while Jago’s electric guitar twangs with the horn on a very clever Hard Times.” The band shows some punch on “Expospheric” and the ballad “Next Time…” has a spaciousness that works well for Small’s lyrical tenor, while O’Donnell’s voice sings along with Klaxton’s moaning horn on the languid “The Land of Dreams.” The tunes never overstay their welcome, the solos state their purpose and serve the music well. I like this guy!