Trombonist Nick Finzer leads a sublimely swinging sextet through a collection of well crafted originals here. He teams up with Lucas PIno/reeds, Alex Wintz/g, Glenn Zaleski/p, Dave Baron/b and Jimmy McBride/dr and they glide easily with style and grace on medium tempo toe tappers like “Life Happens” and “All Hype.” Finzer has a warm tone to his horn, easy and relaxed and it mixes well with Pino’s tenor on the exotic “Spheres of Influence” while Finzer’s plunger gets bluesy on “ While You’re gone.” Pino’s bass clarinet goes softly with Wintz’s guitar on “Steadfast” while piano and guitar bounce nicely on “Why Aren’t You Excited.” The team bears down most assertively at the end on the roller coaster ride of “Just Passed the Horizon” but most of the time taste and style carry the load. Rewarding!
Origin Records