June 2007

Logan Richardson
Cerebral Flow
Fresh Sound Records

By Forrest Dylan Bryant

Logan Richardson’s saxophone playing is incisive, multi-dimensional and remarkably flexible, wrapping and twisting phrases into unexpected origami shapes. In his debut release, Richardson leads a roiling quintet through 10 challenging originals, his convoluted alto and soprano arcing out over choppy waters and then plunging headlong, to stab at Mike Pinto’s shimmering vibraphone or entwine Matthew Brewer’s pulsing bass. Two dynamic drummers, Nasheet Waits and Thomas Crane, anchor five tracks apiece, while guitarist Mike Moreno prowls darkly around the edges.