Quick Response

Album Review

Guitarist Dom Minasi's quartet is particularly intriguing because each of the musicians is capable of playing both conventional bop/hard bop and creative improvised explorations. During this set, the most interesting pieces are the standards ("What Is This Thing Called Love," "Softly as in a Morning Sunrise" and "Dizzy Lizzie" which is based on one) because they feature the players deconstructing and reinventing the pieces in colorful fashion. Altoist Mark Whitecage's tone may take a bit of getting used to since (like Von Freeman's) it slips in and out-of-tune, but it wins one over in time. Organist Kyle Koehler escapes from the usual dominant Jimmy Smith influence in order to display his own approach, drummer John Bollinger is stimulating in support and Dom Minasi is generous in allocating solo space while keeping the ensembles coherent and his own playing full of variety. The inside/outside music constantly keeps one guessing and is well worth several close listens.