From a stellar lineup of Austin Texas musicians, the Alex Coke Carl Michel Sextet’s new recording, Emergence expands jazz boundaries with a feast of sound. Shining with an unmistakable power and deep beauty, the unique instrumentation of horns, harp, guitar, pedal steel, contrabass, and vibes speaks in a compelling ensemble voice, while the soloists deliver a virtuosic exploration via reimagined arrangements and new composition.

The Alex Coke and Carl Michel Sextet features saxophonist/flutist Alex Coke, guitarist Carl Michel, Austin Symphony principal harpist Elaine Barber, pedal steel player Bob Hoffnar (Liminal Sound Series), double bassist James Suter, and percussionist Carolyn Trowbridge on vibes.

1. After The Rain (6:06)
2. Rolling...The Wind Picks Up And The Boats Cast Off For Troy (3:32)
3. Bagatelle II (4:34)
4. Mangled Tango (4:44)
5. 4 Mobile Structures Dedicated To Alexander Calder (9:31)
6. Locust Grove (2:43)
7. Again (5:55)
8. Garden Of Eden (4:55)
9. Wait/Not Wait (5:02)
10. CME (4:12)
11. Presence (4:38)
12. POP! (4:22)

This unique ensemble, which has origins in jazz, classical, folk, extended technique, and improvisation, opens their brand new recording on the classic John Coltrane cut, the hauntingly beautiful After The Rain and the atmospherically-hued, almost folkish in nature, Rolling...The Wind Picks Up And The Boats Cast Off For Troy, and then we get the their languishing version of Valentin Silvestrov’s Bagatelle II, the soulfully expressive Mangled Tango, and then comes the veritably ethereal, near ten minute epic 4 Mobile Structures Dedicated To Alexander Calder, and the shimmering Locust Grove.

Along next is one of my own personal favorites, the most darling of waltz’s, Again which is itself backed seamlessly by the sumptuous layers within Paul Motian’s decadent Garden Of Eden, the intangible Wait/Not Wait, the album rounding out on the quietly expressive CME, the uniquely jangled expressions of Presence, coming to a close on the ensemble-introduced, countrified twang found within POP!

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