Label: International Anthem, 2023

Personnel - Rob Mazurek: trumpet, electronic treatments, voice; Jeff Parker: guitar; Craig Taborn: wurlitzer, moog; Angelica Sanchez: piano, wurlitzer, moog; Damon Locks: voice, electronics, samples; Gerald Cleaver: drums + Guests: Mauricio Takara: percussion, electronic percussion (#1); Cathlene Pineda: synth bass (#1).

For this new outing on the International Anthem label, the trumpeter, composer and interdisciplinary artist Rob Mazurek leads a reduced version of his acclaimed, cosmically-minded Exploding Star Orchestra.

The follow-up to the amazing Dimensional Stardust, one of the best records of 2020, is called Lightning Dreamers. Even if not as big in sound, it rises to the occasion with an instrumentation that feels infectiously alive. Imagine an avant-garde setting with electronic fusions and buoyant psychedelic funk. This is how the CD begins, with “Future Shaman”. Gerald Cleaver emulates a trap beat that calls for Mauricio Takara’s percussive qualities. Also guesting here is Cathlene Pineda who guarantees playful synth bass riffery throughout. Mighty keyboardists Craig Taborn and Angelica Sanchez, guitarist Jeff Parker (with a highly refracted solo), and Mazurek on trumpet claim individual spotlights.

The recording is a dedication to the recently departed trumpeter Jaimie Branch, whose sound can be heard in the beautifully designed “Black River”, a 14-minute epic that incorporates samples of the full-fledged Orchestra recorded live in Paris in 2022. Under a shamanic spell, the flute of Nicole Mitchell wanders, the drummers are ferociously interlocked, and the keyboardists toggle between pneumatic and combative. It's a horde of sounds of the earth and the extramundane that ends with a psychedelic rock note, akin to Primal Scream and Deep Purple. This piece is a tribute to Rio Negro in Manaus, Brazil, where Mazurek lived for three years. In that city, this river intersects with “White River”, which flowing rubato, features Parker with his own guitaristic looser style of performance.

Sometimes we have the sense of being traveling the unknown, and “Shape Shifter” makes us land on three different planets that complement themselves. “Dream Sleeper” has Mazurek’s trumpetism providing initial fuel, after which it’s Damon Locks’ words that cross the taut but resplendent orchestration. Buckle up for a sonic trip that seeks new ground at every turn.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Future Shaman ► 03 - Shape Shifter ► 04 - Black River

Label: Nonesuch, 2020

Personnel - Rob Mazurek: piccolo trumpet, electronic renderings, modular synth; Damon Locks: voice, electronics; Nicole Mitchell: flutes; Macie Stewart: violin; Tomeka Reid: cello; Joel Ross: vibraphone; Jeff Parker: guitar; Jaimie Branch: trumpet; Angelica Sanchez: acoustic and electric pianos; Ingebrigt Håker Flaten: bass; Chad Taylor: drums, percussion; Mikel Patrick Avery: drums, percussion; John Herndon: drum machines.

Trumpeter/composer Rob Mazurek from Chicago wrote and arranged the 10 pieces on his rewarding new album, Dimensional Stardust, to be tackled by the remodeled Exploding Star Orchestra, whose incredibly talented members include vibraphonist Joel Ross, guitarist Jeff Parker, cellist Tomeka Reid, and flutist Nicole Mitchell, just to name a few. In preference to individuality, the work relies on a collective effort that spins a bit of Sun Ra heliocentrism, jazz-hop, modern composition via Morton Feldman influence, and sometimes traces of acid jazz, in a cross-genre approach that defies categorization.

“Sun Core Tet (Parable 99)” is served with a Sun Ra-style dressing and comes garnished with conspicuous accentuations in the melody, classical chamber overtones and motivating percussive grooves, virtue of Norwegian bassist Ingebrigt Håker Flaten and drummer Chad Taylor. Mosaics of flute overfly the balmy harmonies weaved by vibraphone and synth, aptly plucked strings coexist with muted trumpet... all lend a hand to the almost surrealistic interplay that also defines the irresistible “A Wrinkle in Time Sets Concentric Circles Reeling”.

The ghost of Sun Ra also appears on “Parable 3000”, a slightly epic journey into diversity delivered with an ancient feel, imperial shouts and a confident posture. “Galaxy 1000”, in turn, incorporates exuberant chants and makes us tap our feet to an elementary rhythm later adorned with bright hi-hat.

Unequivocally one of the best numbers on the album, “The Careening Prism Within” lends itself to hip-hop with the jazz as a close companion, in the line of Guru and Gang Starr, but upraised at some point by Parker’s dirty, dial-toned guitar sounds and ostinatos.

The penchant for sophisticated eclectic moods continues with the blissed-out “Parable of Inclusion” and the elliptical title cut, “Dimensional Stardust”. While the former shapes up as a percolating dance with circular trajectories, Eastern-tinged undercurrents and the melodic intertwining of Mazurek and Jaimie Brunch's trumpets, the latter piece is configured with moderate tension and a perfectly outlined melodic idea that repeats throughout. Before completion, Taylor’s busy snare drum gains even more significance, following a break in the rhythmic flow.

Damon Locks’ spoken word is particularly attractive on “Autumn Pleiades”, the composition that wraps up the album. Here, the regular boom-bap beat and the surrounding density marked by string instruments suggesting a mix of classical and Eastern languages serve as a launching pad for a crescendo that runs toward a suspended denouement.

Commanding the Exploding Star Orchestra with self-assurance, Mazurek casts a spell with a quietly triumphing recording that leaves its mark. This sui generis body of work deserves praise.

Favorite Tracks:
02 - A Wrinkle in Time Sets Concentric Circles Reeling ► 04 -The Careening Prism Within ► 09 - Parable 3000