Sprung from the prolific mind of Rob Mazurek, the Exploding Star Orchestra started out in 2007 reaching toward towering heights of artistry and attaining them. Most amazingly, they still manage to do that today with ‘Lightning Dreamers.’

Nicole Mitchell follows in the hallowed footsteps of spiritual visionaries like Sun Ra, Pharoah Sanders and the Art Ensemble of Chicago.

There couldn’t have been a timelier song title than this theatrically creative nugget from master bassist/composer Mark Dresser.

The genius of Rob Mazurek doesn’t necessarily lie in all the musical ideas he has; it’s the modular approach he takes to those ideas. You May Also Like: Rob Mazurek Quintet’s hypnotic, diverse Sound Is rewarded close listens Rob Mazurek’s Black Cube Marriage – Astral Cube (2017) Rob Mazurek –Read More

Everybody digs Nicole Mitchell. They love her in sweet hometown Chicago and all the critics in New York love her, too. Heck, even we discerning types at SER have taken a shining to her. She’s the consensus top flautist in the jazz world, she’s got a new record out, Awakening,Read More

by Tom Johnson Tortoise alum Rob Mazurek had a big concept behind this project. As we all know, sometimes big concepts pay off, sometimes they simply lead to big letdowns. You May Also Like: Rob Mazurek & Exploding Star Orchestra – ‘Lightning Dreamers’ (2023) Rob Mazurek Quintet’s hypnotic, diverse SoundRead More

Each of the year’s four Satoko Fujii records made our Best Of 2010 List. by Pico With the more accessible types of jazz out of the way in Part 3 and Part 4, this Best of 2010 series concludes with the least accessible stuff, the experimental and avant garde stuffRead More

by S. Victor Aaron Cornet player Rob Mazurek has got to be one of the busiest guys on the robust Chicago fringe jazz scene. We loved Sound Is when it came out last year, which introduced his new quintet, but Mazurek has by then helmed or co-helmed so many otherRead More

by S. Victor Aaron There’s jazz and and there’s whack jazz, that label I assign to jazz that is unrestrained, unconventional and sometimes, rude. The kind of jazz that you wouldn’t play at any party, but boy, they sure are fun to listen to when you’re really engaged to theRead More

There are some lines of business where the odds are stacked heavily against you if you decide to go into it. The restaurant biz is notorious for a high failure rate, for instance. The same could be saying about starting an independent record label; they come and go in massiveRead More