Ember: August in March

Reflective of its enigmatic title, the members of Ember—saxophonist/trumpeter Caleb Wheeler Curtis, bassist Noah Garabedian and drummer Vincent Sperrazza—have created something both oblique and accessible on the group's third release, August in March. With an emphasis on well designed, engaging pieces that lead into a distinctive world of close collaboration, this is music that rewards undivided attention.

Aside from a few turns on the trumpet on the winding, slithering "Snake Tune," the elliptical "Sink and Swim," and the brief, freely improvised meditation "No Signal," Curtis plays the stritch for the majority of the album. Essentially a straight-horn alto sax, the stritch was favored especially by Rahsaan Roland Kirk, and it offers a rounded sound that gives Curtis' playing a certain sweetness. This is ideally suited for the album's melodic tendencies, which surface on pieces like "Easy Win" and "Sam Cooke," where the trio is content to let the simple beauty of the tunes work its magic. Elsewhere things do become considerably more animated, however, as Curtis unleashes a furious solo toward the end of "Frank in the Morning," an otherwise understated piece; by the time his acerbic flights reach their peak, his instrument sounds a lot like a soprano sax pushed to its limits.

The highlights are the moments in which the group finds its collective spirit, working through pieces that offer room for exploration. The album's title track is a fine example, where Garabedian's arco winds its way around Curtis' lines and Sperrazza's use of color and subtle brushwork generates an air of mysterious wonder. "Angular Saxon" takes things up a notch, with a more intense rhythmic thrust that leads to exceptional collaborative interaction by the trio. Sperrazza expertly maintains the track's forceful momentum, leading to some ecstatic flurries from Curtis and feisty commentary from Garabedian. "Break Tune" is just as inventive, with a tensile aspect that brings out the best from all three musicians, allowing them to stretch the piece almost—but not quite—to the breaking point.

At times the trio's creativity does flag a bit, as on "Flotation Device and the Shivers," built around a simple series of figures and somewhat plodding rhythmic structure that wears out its welcome well before the six-minute piece's conclusion. But slight missteps aside, there is plenty of enticing music to be found on August in March, and the band's well-honed collaborative instincts are abundantly in evidence.