This San Francisco trio is a sort of Mushroom side project, with that wonderful prog/psych/jazz band?s vintage keyboardist Matt Henry Cunitz and bassist Ned Doherty getting together with drummer David Brandt to deliver 14 snappy, instrumental groovefests (?a collection of spontaneous compositions performed & recorded live in our studio?) that?ll have your heart fluttering and your feet shuffling for days to come. The Mushroom pedigree is apparent right from the get-go on the opening groover, ?Avenue of the Giants,? which rides Cunitz? organ grinding solos across the vast krautrocking universe populated with the likes of Kraftwerk, Neu! and Tangerine Dream. ?The Recliner? is just that ? a funky, laidback cocktail lounging groover with nods to Booker T. and Al Kooper?s ?Super Session? with Mike Bloomfield and Stephen Stills. I also heard a nasty ?Green Onions?-ish riff grabbing hold of ?Glue Avenue Doherty?s big fast bass swallows everything in its path, including Cunitz? gurgling keyboards on the loopy, happy foot dance party ?Suspension of Belief? and his looping, loping, repetitive riff on ?The Riptide,? coupled with Brandt?s heart pounding tympanis and Cunitz? sputtering fills, it?s time for a big band groove like Gene Krupa or Buddy Rich steamrolling into town.

The trio get jiggy with it on ?Car Tune Breakdown,? which, besides demonstrating their sense of humor and fondness for punny titles, gives us a full-throttled jazzy assault riding the wave of Cunitz? playful melody. ?Gyroscopic? illustrates their more rocking side, with a throbbing bass meeting Crimsonesque keyboards and ?Shhh?snow? is a short bopping, Sunday afternoon stroll through the park. ?First Bloom? takes the basic riff from Tom Petty?s ?Breakdown? and twists it into a labyrinthine bowl of spaghetti, then throws in a few of Ray Manzarek?s ?Rider On The Storm? riffs for good measure.

A lovely surprise and a pure delight from start to finish! The music world needs more fun-loving, no-holds-barred jam sessions like this. 8/10 -- Jeff Penczak (18 December, 2006)