Playing saxes and flutes, Matty Steckler delivers eight original post boppers with his team of Curtis Hasselbring/tb, Todd Neufield/g, Dave Ambrosio/b and Satoshi Takeishi/dr-perc. His alto is bright on the angular and Monkish “Unison” with a perky soprano during “Bastard Rag”. The team marches forward on the cheerful “Agriturismo” and delivers a rich Brazilian flavor for Steckler’s flute on “Scene Change”. Neufeld’s guitar rocks on the aggressive and shrieky “Do The Betty Rubble” and Hasselbring’s trombone is pretty over Takeishi’s brushes on “What Seems Eternity In Salem”. Post bop postings.
Matty Steckler teams up with a sax team of Jared Sims, Felipe Salles and Charles Kohlhase for a front line backed by drummer Bill Carbone and bassist Gary Wicks for a 2003 gig. The rhythm team gives a New Orleans feel on the snappy “Hot Peas and Butter” and the driving “Mentes Flexiveis” with some nice soprano sax searing through the traffic. Don’t bother keeping a scorecard of who’s soloing, as the reeds together give Ellingtonian textures on “Elegy” while getting funky on “Ictus, Blues-Us”. There are some fun boppers like “Friar Tuck’s Railroad Adventure” and “Null Set”. A walk in deep reeds.