For this second CD, Elevado, Astral Project keep mining the deep wellspring of original music written by their membership. Five tracks come from the pen of saxophonist Tony Dagradi, plus three apiece from guitarist Steve Masakowski and bassist James Singleton. All have that unmistakably vibrant New Orleans flavor within a modern jazz context, displaying a cool urgency driven by the rhythmic brilliance of drummer John Vidacovich, and colored by Dagradi's potent melodic sax work, the astounding piano punch of David Torkanowsky, Masakowski's clean, untreated guitar, and the rock-solid underpinnings of Singleton. The first four numbers set the tone: Bulldog Run, with its infectious six/eight funk and deep basslines from Singleton, the recap (originally on Masakowski's Blue Note CD Direct Axecess) of the sing-song, time-shifting Paladia, the happy strains of Carnival and the Michael Pellera composition Lauren Z display the band at its zenith, the latter piece sporting guitar/sax/piano unison lines that shimmer and cry out for attention in a most emotional fashion. The rest of the CD goes through different phases, from pop-like ballads Too Soon to Tell and N.O. Goodbyes to the frenetic Nose Dive, the quirky Gator Bait, the darker funk of Miller, and Torkanowsky taking it out on the initially spacy, eventually avant O.F.O. This is one of the very best, if not the best contemporary ensembles of the late '90s. They're tight, tuneful, powerful and uncompromising, with a complete understanding of dynamic shadings, and individually some of the best musicians anywhere. This recording represents a high-water mark that may be hard to top, but it's likely that they will, perhaps on a date that captures them in performance -- they're that great. ~ Michael G. Nastos, Rovi

1		Bulldog Run
2		Paladia
3		Carnival
4		Lauren Z
5		Too Soon to Tell
6		Gator Bait
7		Miller
8		O.F.O
9		Burgundy
10		Nose Dive
11		N. O. Goodbyes
12		Astral Elevado

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