Search - Joey Baron & Barondown :: Crackshot

3.5 Stars - Good music, but not Baron's best

Steward Willons | Illinois | 07/15/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Joey Baron and his band, Barondown, always turns out a great, freewheeling performance in the way that only a group of crazed avant jazz improvisers can. "Crackshot" is a good album, although not as good as "Tongue in Groove" or "RAIsedpleasuredot". Since it's one of only three CDs they made, it's worth picking up, provided you can find it. I'm not sure this particular album was released on John Zorn's Avant label since the other two were actually released domestically. Avant discs are always difficult to find and expensive when you do. This creates a dilemma - is it worth the price, which is only going up now that it's out of print? I think it is, but you'll have to decide how much you like Barondown.



There are some great up-tempo numbers and then there are some slower tunes. The slower selections are not nearly as colorful as the faster pieces and tend to turn into a sort of dull grey, kind of like the album cover. For this reason, I would recommend you try the other two albums before this. All the classic Barondown elements are in place - it's just not quite as striking as the nearly flawless "Tongue in Groove.""