Album Review
A student of Anthony Braxton, Scott Rosenberg learned his master's lessons well, and from the opening notes on this album Braxton's presence is clearly felt. Some of the pieces such as "Tddk" emerge from the school of "ghost trance music," with unending angular phrases that stick in the craw. Others veer in different directions, but through it all there is a splendid stew of carefully crafted notated and improvised portions, a limitless feast. Rosenberg calls his quintet the Skronktet West, all of whose members the saxophonist has performed with regularly, and the level of detail and focus is evident. While outwardly the instrumentation is hardly revolutionary (two reeds plus rhythm, with the guitar substituting for the piano), the actual sounds often have a chamber-like quality charged by the freestyle improvisations and the abstract composing. With this album, Rosenberg reaffirms his emerging status as a significant free improviser and writer, shedding some of the excess abstraction of his earliest recordings and infusing his works with humor. His solos take on qualities of a man in a rush who knows where he is going but has no time to dawdle. Rosenberg's launching points take a cue from Braxton, yet he is careful not to clone but to embrace, and the results attest to Rosenberg's ability to maintain his individuality. John Shiurba is a remarkable guitarist, and he contributes significantly with his offbeat playing, as does percussionist Gino Robair. There is electricity in the air and Rosenberg exploits it fully, creating a stunningly sophisticated album that is as fun as it is serious, fulfilling what George Gruntz terms "serious fun."
