Sam Newsome is the reigning champ of preaching the message about the soprano sax. He is usually in solo or duet form, with this latest album featuring him exploring just about every part of the straight sax, teamed with “preparations” alongside. Not only does he explore the mouthpiece and reed with pops, slurs and tongue snaps as on “Urban Location,” “Seven Points of Reference” or ‘Bubble Mute Boogie,” but he uses these sounds as part of the percussive rhythm as well.
Other times, he creates tweeks, subtones and squeals on his “Solo” and “Chaos Theory” moments, sometimes making rich melodies and other times digging into deep magma. It’s a thrilling journey into the visceral of the straight sax.