The title and accompanying artwork of this double-CD set, while amusingly dramatic, is nonetheless an honest indicator of the frame of mind of many of the musicians dedicated to performing modern jazz improvisation in all its glory. To some listeners the idea of "freedom" suggests nothing more than unbridled anarchy -- as described by no less a master of the genre than Anthony Braxton, something like the sounds of what happens when the teacher leaves the classroom. To Charlie Kohlhase and the talented members of his quintet, it is a freedom to work in areas of their own choosing and interest, to communicate with ideas from both the heart and the head. The results, honed down from a series of live performances in 2001, rarely get anywhere near the sound of an all-out free-form freak-out. It is a tightly disciplined, intentionally varied program executed by a quite typical jazz instrumental lineup of three horns, drums, and bass. Of the two discs that fit smartly into a compact and convenient cardboard sleeve, the second one is more immediately engaging. Kicking off with a terrific cover of Sun Ra's Super Bronze, Kohlhase whips through a baritone sax solo that swings as hard as vintage Pepper Adams. The theme is laid out sharply, the rhythmic feel buoyant yet held to the earth with a mastery of syncopation. Going into a version of Thelonious Monk's Crepescule With Nellie, the group holds forth for about the same length as some of Monk's earliest Blue Note recordings, deciding not to extrapolate at any length. Mad, the opening salvo in a suite inspired at least in part by an obnoxious roommate, is really a wondrous thing, proving for one thing that a composer simply can't do wrong when attempting to be intentionally irritating.

1		Pig Pile
2		Grasping at Straws
3		Doom Is Yours
4		Doom Is Mine
5		It's Just the Tip of the Icebox
6		Super Bronze
7		Crepescule With Nellie
8		"The 'Mad' Suite"
9		Framework
10		Play Free or Die
11		The Brink