For those unaware, the Alex Coke and Carl Michel Sextet features saxophonist/flutist Alex Coke, guitarist Carl Michel, Austin Symphony principal harpist Elaine Barber, pedal steel player Bob Hoffnar (Liminal Sound Series), double bassist James Suter, and percussionist Carolyn Trowbridge on vibes.

This unique ensemble, which has origins in jazz, classical, folk, extended technique, and improvisation, will release their third album together, Situation on January 29th, 2024, on which the sextet continues its sonic exploration.

For this brand new musical outing, the six versatile musicians perform six originals by the co-leaders and one composition by Hoffnar, the playful Let’s Go To The Park.

1 - 440
2 - Sketchy
3 - The Seeker
4 - Sulkinkutsu 3
5 - Introduction to Aquarium
6 - Aquarium
7 - Situation
8 - 221
9 - Sea and Sky
10 - Let’s Go To The Park
11 - Crepuscule With Nellie
12 - Pines of Rome
13 - Miyako
14 - Sulkinkutsu 2

This majestically sculpted, earnestly heartfelt new recording opens on the whisperery melodies and notes of their version of The Carla Bley Band’s late seventies track 440 and the ethereally stoic construct of Sketchy, and then brings us the low slung, emphatically embodied The Seeker, the glistening Sulkinkutsu 3, the beautiful Introduction to Aquarium, which then itself leads into the ornate gossamer of Camille Saint-Saëns’s Aquarium, before we are brought forth the playful title track Situation.

Along next are the immersive sounds and rhythms within 221 and the free-flowing, atmospherically-charged Sea and Sky, and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the delicately-hued Let’s Go To The Park, the gently jaunty Crepuscule With Nellie (an homage to Thelonious Monk), their flourishing rendition of Italian composer Ottorino Respighi’s Pines of Rome, the album rounding out on a quietly cinematic take on Wayne Shorter’s Miyako, closing on the translucent appeal of Sulkinkutsu 2.

Following the success of their first two albums, the Alex Coke & Carl Michel Sextet continues its creative evolution. Situation weaves together the individual members contributions in a collaborative offering that could only be theirs.

Musicians:
Alex Coke/Flute & Sax, Carl Michel/guitar, Elaine Barber/Harp, Bob Hoffnar/Pedal Steel, James Suter/Bass, Carolyn Trowbridge/Vibes.

www.carlmichel.com