The fact that this Chicago-based septet includes a trombonist from the very particular scene of New Orleans says much about their intentions turned to practice. At this point we know how Jeb Bishop (trombone), Josh Berman (cornet) and Keefe Jackson (tenor saxophone) sound together, because it’s not the first time we find them, or some of them, in the same frontline, but here Jeff Albert (trombone, bass trombone) has the clear function to put everything upside down. And he does it either connecting the music to a certain jazz essentiality, or enabling his partners to go to comfortable situations they have explored previously. He really is a wild card here, and he knows how to influence developments without getting in the way. There’s another player with a key role here: vibraphonist Jason Adasiewicz, well supported by contrabassist Matthew Golombisky and drummer Quin Kirchner, makes sure that the Lucky 7’s aren’t just another “avant” brass band. How? Furnishing the colors we don’t expect to hear in this context. And how beautiful and graceful the results are! The liner notes by Kirchner about his composed contribution, “Pluto Junkyard”, mention the purpose of this piece to be “exciting, scary, fun, and unusual”, but truth is those adjectives apply to the entirety of the CD. Brilliant!!