This newly-crowned jazz savior band delivers, in its second disc for Columbia, pretty much the same kind of music their first CD presented: proportionally produced, sometimes dynamic, often bombastic compositions that clearly evince each member's contribution while occasionally getting lost in its own forest of noise.
Somewhat ironically, for this group, as the drummer goes so goes the trio. Depending on where the critic comes from, David King is either the great bridge between the rock world and jazz or the great pounder and thrasher who destroys any dynamic improvisation merely by the power of beat. King's most egregious moment is during his own "Layin' A Strip For The Higher-Self State Line," when he could have used a dose of Joe Jonesish swing juice to enhance pianist Ethan Iverson's terrific riffing as the song rolls on. Yet, King's other tune, "Frog And Toad," supplies the disc with its most inventive music, featuring the highly resonant bassist Reid Anderson.
As far as rehashings go, the first cut, "1979 Semi-Finalist," seems to be a slightly abridged version of "Smells Like Teen Spirit," one of the trio's workings of rock classics that have gained critical attention. Ornette Coleman's "Street Woman" gets a respectful, if not inspirational, reading. The Pixies' "Velouria" receives the most oppositional treatment, beginning pensively before blowing into a full-fledged neo-classical triad. Later, Ozzy's "Iron Man" gets a somewhat less creative visit, with the band stopping the song for periods of percussive noodling that may play better live than on disc.
Overall, some of the band's wit (such as in "Cheney Pinata") and its penchant for compositional experimentation resurfaces enough to make Give an interesting album that ultimately leads one to wonder what follows after this new wave persona dries up.
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