Rob Mazurek - Director, Composer, Cornet, Computer;
Nicole Mitchell - Flutes and voice;
Corey Wilkes - trumpet;
Josh Berman - Cornet;
Matt Bauder - Bass Clarinet, Tenor saxophone;
Ken Vandermark - Baritone saxaphone, Bass clarinet;
Jeb Bishop - Trombone;
Jason Adesewicz - Vibraphone;
John McIntyre - Electronics, mallets;
Matthew Lux - Bass guitar;
Jason Ajemian - Double bass;
Jeff Parker - guitar;
Jim Baker - piano, arp;
Mike Reed - drums;
John Herndon - drums
Sounds Like
New York Times Review By NATE CHINEN Published: January 21, 2007 Exploding Star Orchestra The cornetist Rob Mazurek originally convened his Exploding Star Orchestra for a commissioned concert a year and a half ago at Millennium Park in Chicago. “We Are All From Somewhere Else” (Thrill Jockey), the group’s phantasmagorical first album, was recorded in a studio some time later with many of the same musicians. Mr. Mazurek, a Chicago native who now lives in Brazil, divides the album neatly into two suites, each with its own whimsically oblique story line. (Sting rays, phoenixes and the violent energies of the universe are involved.) Writing for 14 pieces, he employs strategies somehow evocative of both Lalo Schifrin and Andrew Hill. Swirling action is his strong suit, even when the working conceit is a group improvisation against the recorded hum of electric eels. The flutist Nicole Mitchell and the guitarist Jeff Parker make the strongest individual impressions, along with Mr. Mazurek, who augments his cornet with electronics. But the orchestra itself demands a wide-angle focus. At times its multilayered sonic atmosphere suggests an expanded edition of the instrumental rock group Tortoise, with which it shares several members, including Mr. Parker. As engineered by John McEntire, another Tortoise transplant, this album comes across as a work of ambition, imagination and panache.
