Label: Star Jelly, 2026
Personnel - Elijah Shiffer: alto saxophone; Christian Cail: guitar; Max Kutner: electric bass; Colin Hinton: drums; Maya Luz: vocals (#9,10).
Recorded live at three different New York venues (Brooklyn, Queens, and Rochester), Callithumpian marks the second release by vibrant saxophonist and composer Elijah Shiffer with his punk-infused jazz ensemble Robber Crabs. Delivered with earnestness and charged with passion, the album features a completely renewed lineup, with guitarist Christian Cail, bassist Max Kutner, and drummer Colin Hinton excelling across 11 tracks that highlight their expansive and adventurous musical stance.
The hyperactivity of Shiffer’s “Mustang Mascot”—with its barrage of accents, acerbic guitar chords, and locomotive-paced drumming—serves as an ideal vehicle for the quartet’s irreverence and empowering sound. Cail’s frantic, often disorienting solo evokes Brandon Seabrook’s psychedelic tantrums, while Shiffer navigates a hard-swinging framework delineated with a post-rock edge. Toward the end, its marching thematic parade gives way to unaccompanied drum exploration. By contrast, “The Socialite” feels comparatively more conventional, shifting between tempo and intensity while toggling from elegant trad jazz to abrasive punk rock.
“Swindler’s Dream” arrives at full throttle, its melody tinged with Eastern inflections and driven by spirited saxophone–guitar interplay, while the title track “Callithumpian” resembles a cabaret for the future, propelled by an animated strut, unexpected staccato figures, and a confident embrace of dissonant deconstruction.
Penned by Mexican composer Conlon Nancarrow, “Player Piano Study 3a” emerges as an irresistible hybrid of bluesy rock ’n’ roll, punk, and avant-garde jazz. The seemingly smoother textures of “Tentacle Mind, Part 1” soon thicken and intensify, culminating in tense multiphonics and an insistent rhythmic heat that favors turbulence over stability. As in other cases, the performance enhances rather than overshadows the composition.
Cail’s “Zero Pleasure Tolerance” bursts forth with a mix of motifs over a blistering, motorik-like pulse, while guest vocalist Maya Luz contributes two of her own pieces—the rhapsodic “Manicures and Mood Swings” and the pop-leaning ballad “My Thrill”. Though contrasting in mood, both integrate effectively within the album’s broader tonal palette.
Constantly on the edge, Robber Crabs’ music allows for freedom and discipline alike. Callithumpian transpires loud energy, playfulness, and character via hooky themes, blistering improvisation, and tight-knit interaction. All in all, fun material.
Favorite Tracks:
01 - Mustang Mascot ► 04 - Callithumpian ► 07 - Tentacle Mind, Part 1