Aside from the famed
Tower of Power, very few horn sections become successful recording units in their own right, but the splashy brass spice of
Windborne just may have the goods. Featuring five equal time members of the Dallas Brass, the self-contained unit takes raucous liberties in fusing the most infectious elements of pop, jazz, big band, swing, soul, classical and ideas from the Cool era to arrive at a musical way station where the blend makes perfect sense. Amazingly enough,
Windborne achieves this harmonic-melodic convergence without benefit of the tried and true sax flavors most horn sections let stand out front when the time comes for a solo turn. Instead, a sort of democratic symmetry takes place, and each cut features a different member performing his own chart diversions.
Chuck Lazarus' flugelhorn and
Michael Levine's trombone stand out just slightly above the pack, even if
John Wasson seems to mastermind the overall sound. Also noteworthy is
Matthew Nicholl, who lays some of sugary synth foundations upon which this soaring ensemble builds its celestial navigations.