CLIMBING THE AIR

1. "Climbing the Air" (8:53) impressive skills but kind of boring and bringing nothing new to the world. (16/20)

2. "Red Roses" (4:43) nice chord arrangements and flute work. Earworm melodies. My favorite song on the album. (9.25/10)

3. "Resistance" (7:45) more straightforward Jazz-Rock Fusion with nice chord progression, nice drumming and sax play. Not enough change and/or drama. (13/15)

4. "Moneypenny" (7:58) opens with a movement based on some Hendrix-like guitar riff before bass solos with some bouncy keys and syncopated drums providing support before the trumpet arrives and takes over. (12.75/15)

5. "Herois" (8:25) almost MANHATTAN TRANSFER smooth jazz for the intro and vocal-infused first three minutes. Turns sentimental piano bar jazz for the mid-section. Overall, an odd mish-mash of themes--yet, containing very pleasant melodies. Another top three song. (17/20)

6. "Blackmail" (6:56) organ-based uptempo blues jazz intro turns more rock at the 30 second mark. The organ remains important throughout but there are downtempo sections with sonorous DAVE SANBORN-like sax interspersed as well. (12.5/15)

7. "Skeptic" (8:44) has a MAD CRAYON Preda sound and feel to it from the start. A lack of vocals manages to keep it in the jazz-rock realm. Nice STEELY DAN-like keyboard sounds until Hammond solo in the fourth minute. Overall, another interesting late-evening Mini Cooper ride through la vieille ville. (17/20)

Total Time: 54:24

Though blessed with modern sounds, nicely creative ideas, and very proficient musicianship, the music here feels as if a rehash (or updating) of late 1970s/1980s smooth jazz themes. Nothing to get too excited about except for good, enjoyable music.

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