by Richard S. Ginell
Julian Priester and his group Marine Intrusion produce sounds that are mostly polarized between gentle Europeanized reflections and probes into the avant-garde, all unified by the soft-focused, airy ECM sonic perspective. Priester does sound very much like J.J. Johnson in the forward thrust of his attacks, and his flutter effects bring back spaced-out memories of his work in the Herbie Hancock Sextet. The opening title track is a thoughtful overdubbed Priester duet with himself that empties directly out into &Rhythm Magnet,& with Heshima Mark Williams' electric bass ostinato and relaxed Spanish-tinged piano by Curtis Clark. &Wind Dolphin& begins with a drum solo and soon becomes a series of gentle, then agitated free-form tumblings, all soothed by the ECM ambience. Welcome quantities of funky rhythmic instability and hard-rock flash from guitarist Ray Obeido enter the picture on &Anatomy of Longing.& This is an often engaging record from a trombonist too seldom heard as a leader.