Sickafoose Album w/ Ani, Skerik

Todd Sickafoose Tiny Resistors Due June 10 on Cryptogramophone Records
Album Includes Contributions From Ani DiFranco, Andrew Bird, Skerik and More

Widely known as bassist for Ani DiFranco, Todd Sickafoose blurs the boundaries between jazz, blues, indie rock and free improv for a mind-altering romp.

Tiny Resistors, the third and most recent opus by Todd Sickafoose, enlarges on the freewheeling vision the bassist delivered on his two previous releases Dogs Outside (2000) and Blood Orange (2006.) The eleven tunes, all Sickafoose originals, continue his predilection for creating music that moves simultaneously in several directions without ever losing focus. With a band composed of genre bending heavy hitters, Sickafoose is intent on blending the disciplines of composition and improvisation, jettisoning categories and exploring the parameters of music without limitation.

“When I started this band, I had an idea that there would be no solos,” Sickafoose explains. “The horn players are part of the band; they don’t sit around waiting to step up to the mic and blow. I had a vision of global improvisation, unlimited by a single style. When it’s successful, like during the coda of “Bye Bye Bees,” we improvise the entire structure of the song and that’s what gets me excited – making up the rules as you go along, creating the whole structure, not just soloing within a structure. I like the feeling you get when don’t know what’s going to happen next.”

Tiny Resistors fulfills its composer’s desire to combine crisp melodies you can whistle with the ensemble’s surging chaotic energy. Its diverse palette, startling musical shifts and wide ranging tonal qualities create a jazzy psychedelic dreamscape that’s both challenging and captivating. Tiny Resistors will be available June 10 on Cryptogramophone Records.