CD REVIEW
3.5 stars
AS composer, arranger, producer and bandleader, Isaacs is considered and meticulous, which is a good description of this studio album.
Compared with the previous, more visceral live album, Tell It Like It Is, which comes as a bonus DVD in this release, Aurora has a decorative, almost embroidered feel that reflects Isaacs’ nurture.
He has James Muller play electric and acoustic guitar in Bagatelle
and Threnody, which is ornamented like fine porcelain. Robust For the
Road has great solos from Muller, Matt Keegan (sax) and Brett Hirst (bass), but they remain contained. The title track builds slowly, like tension before the Wet in Darwin.
The Resurgence Band here is about finesse, cohesion and intricacy rather than bold statements or stretching boundaries.
Download: For the Road, Bagatelle
File between: Tim Stevens, Keith Jarrett
ROGER MITCHELL
This review was also published in the Play liftout of the Sunday Herald Sun on January 30, 2011
Ausjazz Blog 